COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Affordable Housing: Construction

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many affordable housing units he expects to have been completed in the London borough of Bexley in  (a) 2010-11 and  (b) 2011-12.

Andrew Stunell: The Department does not forecast levels of future house building, and delivery will be determined by local housing plans.
	We launched the Framework for the Affordable Homes Programme on 14 February 2011. There is almost £4.5 billion investment in new affordable housing to deliver up to 150,000 new affordable homes. The actual number of homes delivered in each year will be dependent on agreements between registered providers and the Homes and Communities Agency in consultation with local authorities. Providers have until 3 May 2011 to submit delivery proposals to the agency.

Councillors

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether his Department issues guidance to local councils wishing to reduce the number of councillors.

Bob Neill: No. The size of principal councils is a matter for the independent Local Government Boundary Commission for England, which is directly responsible to Parliament.
	Guidance about electoral reviews, including issues about council size, is available on the Commission's website.

Departmental Domestic Visits

Caroline Flint: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the date was of each ministerial visit to each local authority area since May 2010.

Bob Neill: holding answer 7 February 2011
	Further to the answer I gave the right hon. Member on 21 December 2010,  Official Report, column 1308W, since May 2010, the following ministerial visits have been made by the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, my right hon. Friend the Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr Pickles), and his ministerial team:
	 The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government has visited:
	the royal borough of Windsor and Maidenhead council area, on 7 June 2010;
	the city of Bradford metropolitan district council area, on 29 June 2010;
	the Bournemouth borough council area, from 6 to 8 July 2010;
	the Liverpool city council area, on 19 July 2010;
	the Southampton city council area, on 28 July 2010; and
	the Birmingham city council area, on 20 January 2011.
	 The  Minister for Housing and Local Government  (Grant Shapps) has visited:
	the London borough of Wandsworth area, on 20 May 2010;
	the Swindon borough council area, on 27 May 2010;
	the Leeds city council area, on 24 June 2010;
	the Welywn Hatfield council area, on 15 July 2010 and 7 December 2010;
	the London borough of Southwark area, on 19 July 2010;
	the Reading borough council area on 6 July 2010
	the Birmingham city council area, on 22 September 2010;
	the Kettering borough council area, on 11 November 2010;
	the London borough of Westminster area, on 24 November 2010;
	the London borough of Haringey area, on 7 December 2010;
	the Manchester city council and Salford city council area, on 31 January 2011; and
	the London borough of Lambeth area on 2 February 2011.
	 The  Minister for Decentralisation  (Greg Clark)  has visited:
	the London borough of Wandsworth area on 25 June 2010;
	the Liverpool city council area, on 19 July 2010;
	the Bristol city council area, on 26 July 2010; and
	the Bradford city council area, on 29 July 2010.
	 The  Parliam entary Under-Secretary of State  (Robert Neill)  has visited:
	the Solihull metropolitan borough council area, on 18 June 2010;
	the Maidstone borough council area, on 23 August 2010;
	the Wirral council area, on 13 September 2010;
	the Thurrock council area, on 20 September 2010;
	the London borough of Barnet area, on 23 September 2010;
	the Southend-on-Sea borough council area, on 30 September 2010;
	the Bristol city council area, on 8 October 2010;
	the Gloucester city council area, on 14 October 2010;
	the Swale borough council area on 25 October 2010;
	the Preston city council area, on 3 November 2010; and
	the city of Derby area, on 20 January 2011.
	 The  Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Andrew Stunell)  has visited:
	the St Albans city and district council area, on 1 July 2010;
	the Bournemouth borough council area, from 6 to 7 July 2010;
	the Woking borough council area, on 19 July 2010;
	the Liverpool city council area, on 23 July 2010 and 2 December 2010;
	the Bristol city council area, on 26 July 2010;
	the Bradford metropolitan district council area, on 29 July 2010;
	the High Peak borough council area, on 13 September 2010;
	the Cambridge city council area, on 22 November 2010;
	the Manchester city council area, on 6 December 2010, 18 January 2011 and 31 January 2011;
	the London borough of Merton council area, on 7 December 2010;
	the Somerset county council area, on 10 January 2011; and
	the Birmingham city council area, on 22 January 2011.
	 The  Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State ( Baroness Hanham )  has visited:
	the Bournemouth borough council area, from 6 to 7 July 2010;
	the Nottingham city council area, on 23 July 2010;
	the Hampshire county council area, on 2 August 2010;
	the Sheffield city council area, on 4 August 2010;
	the Essex county council area, on 8 October 2010;
	the Manchester city council area, on 12 October 2010;
	the Birmingham city council area, on 11 November 2010;
	the Kettering borough council area, on 13 January 2011;
	the Manchester city council area, on 20 January 2011; and
	the Bristol city council area, on 10 February 2011.

Departmental Public Appointments

Fiona Mactaggart: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many  (a) women and  (b) men have been appointed to public duties by his Department since May 2010.

Bob Neill: I have interpreted appointments to "public duties" to mean the same as "public appointments". I therefore refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 8 February 2011,  Official Report, column 174W.

Fire Services: Cambridgeshire

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will assess the effect on service provision of the update of the  (a) regression expenditure base for the funding formula and  (b) fire risk index based on a positively weighted population density indicator for Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service from 2011-12; and if he will make a statement.

Bob Neill: Exemplifications of the effect of particular changes to the formula for formula grant, including those referred to in  (a) and  (b) are contained in the 2010 summer consultation document available on the Department for Communities and Local Government's website at:
	http://www.local.communities.gov.uk/finance/1112/sumcon/index.htm
	Exemplifications of the effect of updating the regression expenditure base are contained in chapters 3, 5 and 6. Exemplification of the effect of using the population density indicator in the fire risk index is contained in chapter 5.

Green Belt

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  if he will make it his policy to ensure that  (a) proposed neighbourhood development orders and  (b) other proposed orders enabling a community right to build do not allow development other than in accordance with Planning Policy Guidance Note 2;
	(2)  if he will take steps to maintain the level of protection for the Green Belt provided for in Planning Policy Guidance Note 2 in any future review of planning policy and guidance.

Bob Neill: The Localism Bill will ensure that neighbourhood development orders and Community Right to Build orders appropriately fit with national planning policy. In particular, it requires these orders to be "appropriate having regard to national policy" before they can come into force.
	This would include national policy on Green Belt. In December we announced the start of work to create a National Planning Policy Framework. As part of this, we will consider how best to update Green Belt policy, currently set out in PPG2 (Planning Policy Guidance Note 2, Green Belts). Local planning authorities must have regard to PPG2 in writing development plans or deciding planning proposals affecting Green Belt. PPG2 establishes a presumption against inappropriate development on Green Belt land, and states the importance of keeping Green Belt land permanently open to prevent the sprawl of development.
	The coalition agreement commits the Government to maintaining Green Belt protection. Abolition of regional strategies through the Localism Bill will also help protect the Green Belt by removing top down directives to review or weaken Green Belt protection in over 30 towns across England.

Housing: Overcrowding

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many households approached each local authority for homelessness assistance on the grounds that overcrowding made it unreasonable for them to continue to occupy their property in each of the last five years; and for how many such households the main homelessness duty was accepted by each local authority in each of the last five years.

Andrew Stunell: The information requested is not held by the Department.

Housing: Overcrowding

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government which local authorities award reasonable preference to overcrowded households in their allocations policy where overcrowding is based on the definition of overcrowding set out in the Housing Act 1985.

Andrew Stunell: The information requested is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Private Rented Housing: Housing Benefit

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps he has taken to ensure closer working between private landlords and housing benefit administrators.

Andrew Stunell: The Government have a comprehensive programme of financial and practical support in place to help local authorities deliver the changes to the local housing allowance in 2011, including £190 million of additional funding to smooth the transition. The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has provided £10 million additional homelessness grant funding. This will help local authorities in London to work with private landlords, for example, to encourage them to accept housing benefit tenants and offer "rent bond" schemes.
	The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has increased discretionary housing payments by £130 million, and provided a further £50 million to support the transitional stages of change. DWP is temporarily extending local authority discretion to make direct payments of housing benefit to landlords when they agree to reduce rents to an affordable level. Detailed guidance on the application of this safeguard will be issued to local authorities shortly. More broadly, local authorities have continued to improve the time taken to decide new housing benefit claims. In the second quarter of 2010-11, new claims in Great Britain were decided in an average of 22 days, compared to 25 days in the same quarter of 2009-10.

Private Rented Housing: Standards

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what recent steps he has taken to ensure that properties in the private rented sector meet minimum health and safety standards required.

Andrew Stunell: Local authorities have extensive powers to take action against landlords who fail to maintain their properties. Under the Housing Health and Safety Rating System, local authorities can assess properties against 29 different hazards. If a property is found to contain serious 'category 1' hazards, the local authority has a duty to take action, which could include enforcement action against the landlord.
	The Government are satisfied that the current legislation provides an important safety net, ensuring that homes are safe and decent and achieves the right balance between the rights and obligations of landlords and tenants. The Government have no plans to impose new regulatory requirements on private landlords. This would be likely to lead to a reduction in the numbers of properties to rent and/or force up rents, which would not help tenants or landlords.

Residents' Associations

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what information he holds on the number of residents' associations in each parliamentary constituency.

Andrew Stunell: This Department does not hold the information requested.
	DCLG does not collect information about the number of residents' associations, though we would estimate that there are many hundreds across the country.

Social Rented Housing

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what his policy is on the management of estates by social tenants.

Andrew Stunell: The Government want to see more social tenants able to take control over the management of their homes. Local authority tenants wishing to take over the management of their homes and estates from their landlord have a statutory right to do so under the Housing Act 1985. The Housing (Right to Manage) (England) Regulations 2008 set out the procedures to be followed. Tenants of housing associations can enter into a voluntary agreement with their landlord if they wish to manage their housing. The Minister for Housing and Local Government, my right hon. Friend the Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Grant Shapps), recently announced plans to make it easier for local authority tenants to exercise their right to manage, as well as an £8 million programme to empower social tenants.

Social Rented Housing

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps he is taking to reduce the incidence and severity of antisocial behaviour in social housing.

Andrew Stunell: The Minister for Housing and Local Government, my right hon. Friend the Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Grant Shapps), announced on 11 January proposals to strengthen the hand of social landlords and tenants in tackling antisocial behaviour. Those proposals include making it easier for landlords to take swift and decisive action against their most antisocial tenants by introducing a new additional mandatory ground for possession for serious housing-related antisocial behaviour; greater flexibility on the use of probationary tenancies; and new funding for an antisocial behaviour action team focused on tenant capacity building.
	More widely, the Government are currently consulting on proposals to streamline and improve the existing toolkit available to the police, social landlords and others to tackle antisocial behaviour. The proposals are intended to better protect victims and communities from the serious harm caused by criminal and antisocial behaviour by making the tools faster, more flexible, and more effective.

Travellers: Caravan Sites

Bob Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will bring forward proposals to strengthen civil law relating to trespass in order to tackle unauthorised Traveller sites on privately owned land.

Bob Neill: As outlined in the Secretary of State's press notice of 29 August 2010, unauthorised developments have created tensions between Travellers and the settled population. We want to redress the balance and put fairness back into communities. The Localism Bill includes provisions to strengthen councils' powers on planning enforcement, and we are reviewing further steps that can be taken against unauthorised encampments.

Voluntary Organisations: Finance

Julian Huppert: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what support his Department provides to voluntary organisations which are facing closure or reduction in service delivery owing to reductions in funding.

Andrew Stunell: holding answer 10 February 2011
	Spending decisions are, and will continue to be, a matter for local authorities. We have a rich diversity of voluntary organisations, charities, faith groups, cooperatives, social enterprises and local housing trusts-all of which already make a huge contribution to local life. I do not expect local authorities to pass on disproportionate cuts to other service providers, especially the voluntary sector.
	The Minister for Decentralisation, the right hon. Member for Tunbridge Wells (Greg Clark), wrote to all local authority leaders on 4 February:
	asking them to share examples of the positive approaches that they have taken to work with the sector, with a view to my Department drawing upon such approaches to highlight and promote best practice; and
	proposing to require all local authorities to publish details about their contractual grants and payments to the sector. This greater transparency would help local small businesses, community groups and social enterprises to become more competitive in bidding for and delivering local services to local people.
	We are also, through the Localism Bill, taking forward our 'Rights' agenda. The Bill, which is presently at Committee stage, includes a community right to challenge. This will enable voluntary and community bodies, as well as parish councils and local authority employees wishing to deliver the service as mutual, to express an interest in running a local authority service, which may trigger a procurement exercise for that service.
	The Bill also contains provisions for a community right to buy, which will enable communities to identify and nominate assets of community value in their local areas for listing by the local authority. When these assets come up for sale, voluntary and community groups will be given extra time to prepare a business case and be ready to bid for the asset when it goes on the open market.
	We intend to develop a package of support to assist voluntary and community sector groups to take up both of these rights and we are consulting on what this support might look like.

SCOTLAND

Private Rented Housing: Fines

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what discussions he has had with the Scottish Executive on the use of funds received from fines rendered against private landlords in Scotland.

Michael Moore: The Economic Secretary to the Treasury has recently written to the Scottish Ministers on this matter.

Scotland Bill

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans he has to publish the correspondence on the Scotland Bill between his Department and the Scottish Government.

David Mundell: The UK Government have no plans to publish their correspondence with the Scottish Government. The UK Government believe it is important to continue to respect the confidentiality of inter-administration discussions.

HEALTH

Cancer Drugs Fund

Ian Liddell-Grainger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what criteria strategic health authorities use to grant funding from the interim Cancer Drugs Fund.

Simon Burns: I refer my hon. Friend to the written answer I gave him on 25 January 2011,  Official Report, column 224W.

Carers: Grandparents

Stuart Andrew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what provision his Department has made to support grandparents who are the primary carers of their disabled grandchildren.

Paul Burstow: This Government recognise the valuable role played by many grandparents who care for their disabled grandchildren, in order to allow the parents of the disabled child to continue to work or to take a break from caring.
	While there is no specific provision available to support grandparent carers, on 25 November 2010, the Government's updated Carers Strategy, "Recognised, valued and supported: Next steps for the Carers Strategy", set out the overarching priority areas for action over the next four years. This includes the provision of personalised support for carers and those they support, and supporting carers to remain mentally and physically well. This can include grandparents caring for their disabled grandchildren.
	To back these commitments up, the Department will be investing additional funding of £400 million to the national health service over the next four years to enable more carers to take breaks from their caring responsibilities, which may include grandparents in caring roles. This money will not be ring fenced, but for 2011-12, primary care trusts should agree policies, plans and budgets to support carers with local authorities and local carers' organisations, and make them available to local people.
	The Department has also made funding available for general practitioner training, to increase their awareness and understanding of all carers' health needs, including grandparents, so that they can receive appropriate support.
	The Department for Education announced in December that they are providing over £800 million over the next four years for short breaks for families of disabled children as part of the new Early Intervention Grant. The Government will be providing £198 million/£202 million/£206 million/£210 million for short breaks over the next four years including the Child Trust Fund money of at least £20 million each year. The Early Intervention Grant is not ring fenced and it will be for local authorities to determine how they use that resource to best effect, including what services would be funded for families with disabled children.

Chlamydia: Screening

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what requirements will be placed on primary care trusts in respect of the delivery of the national Chlamydia screening programme for 2011-12.

Anne Milton: We are committed to continuing opportunistic Chlamydia testing among 15 to 24-year-olds in some form in 2011-12, but are considering how it can be enhanced.
	On 20 December 2010, we published the consultation document 'Healthy Lives, Healthy People: Transparency in Outcomes, Proposals for a Public Health Outcomes Framework'. The new framework will be in operation from April 2012. This includes a proposed indicator on reducing Chlamydia diagnoses rates among 15 to 24-year-olds. A copy of the consultation document has already been placed in the Library.
	In 2011-12, the national health service will continue to lead on improvements to public health, ensuring that public health services are in the strongest possible position when responsibilities are devolved to local authorities.
	NHS organisations will continue to be held to account against the existing public health indicators, which includes Chlamydia screening.

Departmental Contracts

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to his answer of 27 January 2011,  Official Report, columns 458-60W, on departmental contracts, what services were provided under each contract funded from the public purse and awarded by single tender.

Simon Burns: The information to complete the table on the date, type, supplier name and amount of every single tender contract awarded in the written answer of 27 January 2011,  Official Report, columns 458-60W, is extracted from the Department's central payments database. For each payment there is also an entry under a heading 'Item description'. However, these are mostly only very brief or partial. To establish the precise details of what the payment related to would mean contacting the individual branches within the Department which commissioned the service in the first place. They would in turn have to consider exemptions under the Freedom of Information Act. For these reasons the information requested could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.

Diabetes: Health Services

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate has been made of the cost to the NHS of treatment of diabetes and diabetes-related conditions in each year since 2005.

Paul Burstow: Diabetes is a complex life-long condition that can affect every part of the body. There are a number of associated complications with the condition which makes it difficult to calculate the exact total cost to the national health service.
	The Department of Health's programme budget figures indicate £1.43 billion of the Department's gross expenditure in England in 2009-10 was spent on diabetes. This figure does not include spending on prevention or on general medical services or primary medical services.
	
		
			   Diabetes expenditure  (£ billion)  Department of Health gross expenditure  (£ billion)  Diabetes as a proportion of gross expenditure  (percentage) 
			 2004-05 0.69 71.92 1.0 
			 2005-06 0.87 80.19 1.1 
			 2006-07 1.04 84.19 1.2 
			 2007-08 1.15 93.18 1.2 
			 2008-09 1.26 96.81 1.3 
			 2009-10 1.43 103.97 1.4 
		
	
	In 2009-10, 35.5 million items were prescribed for diabetes at a net ingredient cost (NIC) of £649.2 million. This represents 7.7% of the total cost of prescribing in primary care in England in 2009-10, compared to £458.6 million (5.8%) in 2004-05.
	The NIC is the basic cost of a drug. It does not take account of discounts, dispensing costs, fees or prescription charges income.
	Further expenditure will have taken place throughout the NHS system that is not possible to identify.

General Practitioners

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to issue guidance to GP consortia on the commissioning of fracture prevention services.

Paul Burstow: One of the NHS Commissioning Board's five main functions, set out in "Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS", is
	'Providing national leadership on commissioning for quality improvement'.
	This will include setting commissioning guidelines on the basis of clinically approval quality standards developed with the advice of National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE). NICE has been commissioned to develop a Quality Standard on Hip fractures, and a Quality Standard on Fractures excluding head and hip is planned, subject to further work on the feasibility and scope.
	Subject to the passage of the Health and Social Care Bill, currently before Parliament, the NHS Commissioning Board will have responsibility for supporting general practitioner consortia in their commissioning role. It will be for the Board to decide what, if any, guidance to issue on the commissioning of fracture prevention services.

General Practitioners

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will estimate  (a) the number of fragility fractures which would be prevented and  (b) the net cost savings to the NHS that would be achieved in an average GP consortia patient population through the introduction of a commissioned falls and fracture care pathway.

Paul Burstow: The most recent estimate of the extent to which fragility fractures could be prevented for a certain population through the introduction of a falls and fracture care pathway (also known as a fracture liaison service), and the consequent savings to the national health service, is set out in "Fracture prevention services: An economic evaluation", which was published by the Department in 2009. A copy has been placed in the Library.

Health Services: Prices

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what evidence his Department has evaluated on the effect of variable price competition on the health care market.

Simon Burns: The Health and Social Care Bill will not introduce variable price competition into the market for national health service-funded services. The Government's view on the evidence relating to this issue is set out in the Impact Assessment published alongside the Health and Social Care Bill on 19 January and available on the Department's website at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsLegislation/DH_123583

Horse Meat

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many horses were slaughtered for food in each of the last five years.

James Paice: I have been asked to reply.
	The Food Standards Agency has reported that the total number of horses slaughtered at the three abattoirs operating in Great Britain that are licensed to slaughter horses for human consumption in each of the last five years was as follows:
	
		
			   Number of horses slaughtered 
			 2006 3,809 
			 2007 3,859 
			 2008 3,812 
			 2009 5,147 
			 2010 7,933

Horse Meat

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many horses slaughtered for food  (a) were thoroughbreds and  (b) had horse passports in each of the last five years.

James Paice: I have been asked to reply.
	Records relating to slaughtered horses are not held on a breed basis.
	All horses slaughtered for human consumption must be accompanied by either a passport, or, for horses over 12 months of age and covered by the derogation applying to Dartmoor, Exmoor and the New Forest, a passport application form and a correctly completed rump sticker. (Foals moving from those derogated areas require only a rump sticker.)

Mental Health Services

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what his most recent estimate is of the number of people with a personality disorder; and how many of those were in receipt of forensic mental health services at the latest date for which figures are available.

Paul Burstow: Personality disorders are common conditions, with differing levels of severity. The Department does not routinely collect information about personality disorders but estimates suggest between 2 and 5 million people in the United Kingdom have or are at risk of developing personality disorder. Information about the diagnostic classification of users of mental health services is not collected centrally.
	The national health service and national offender management service plan to reconfigure existing services to manage high risk, sexual or violent offenders whose offending is linked to severe forms of personality disorder. The implementation plan for these changes is subject to a consultation by the Department and the Ministry of Justice. Details can be found at:
	www.dh.gov.uk/en/Consultations/Liveconsultations/DH_124435

NHS Foundation Trusts: Debts

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will bring forward legislative proposals to prevent a foundation trust from selling its property to offset short-term financial deficits.

Simon Burns: The Government intend to liberate foundation trusts so they can be free to focus on improving outcomes, be more responsive to patients and innovate. Under proposals in the Health Bill, the disposal of property would primarily be an issue for the foundation trust itself. As the representatives of the public and staff, foundation trust governors would have the final say in all transactions defined as significant in the foundation trust's constitution. The governors' role would be to represent the interests of members and the public and to hold the non-executive directors to account for the performance of the board.
	We intend to establish an operationally independent banking function to manage the taxpayers' investment in foundation trusts. It would set conditions on a foundation trust's debt, that could include restrictions on the disposal of property to maintain the value of the taxpayers' investment.
	The new legislation would also place Monitor under a duty, in its proposed role as economic regulator, to support commissioners in ensuring the continuity of national health service services designated by commissioners for additional regulation. These services and related assets would be protected. Monitor would be able to veto a sale of property if it were not satisfied that the purchaser could continue to provide the designated services.

NHS: Managers

Jeremy Lefroy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many managerial staff were employed in the NHS in England at the end of each financial year since 1997-98.

Simon Burns: The Annual Workforce Census collects the numbers of staff at 30 September each year. The numbers of managers and senior managers working in the national health service since 1998 are shown in the following table.
	The figures collected on 30 September 2010 will be published by the NHS Information Centre on 22 March 2011.
	
		
			  NHS hospital and community health service: NHS infrastructure support, 1998  to  2009, as at 30 September each year, England 
			  Full-time equivalent 
			   Manager  Senior manager 
			 1998 14,112 7,741 
			 1999 14,786 8,592 
			 2000 15,664 8,589 
			 2001 16,911 9,374 
			 2002 19,494 11,420 
			 2003 22,195 11,614 
			 2004 24,642 11,365 
			 2005 26,568 10,981 
			 2006 24,782 10,258 
			 2007 24,873 10,082 
			 2008 26,854 11,083 
			 2009 29,924 12,585 
			  Source:  The NHS Information Centre.

NHS: Pensions

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Health for what reasons closed direction pensions transfers were introduced for social enterprises and not for other providers of public services.

Simon Burns: Closed directions were introduced for staff transferring to "Right to Request" social enterprises as a result of the Command Paper, 'High Quality Care for All: NHS Next Stage Review Final Report'. Closed directions have been available for many years to not for profit providers of national health service funded services, principally to allow staff transferred from the NHS to remain in the pension scheme. Social enterprises therefore already qualified under the existing policy.

NHS: Private Sector

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the likely treatment under EU state aid rules of a foundation trust hospital which receives over 50% of its income from private funding under his legislation proposals for NHS reform.

Simon Burns: On our proposals for national health service reform, we are assessing where European Union law will have an impact and what the position will be with respect to a health system that will remain funded by the taxpayer and providing universal coverage, free at the point of need.
	The Health and Social Care Bill ensures that the principal legal purpose of a foundation trust would remain to provide goods and services for the NHS in England. Foundation trusts would also be required to keep separate accounts for their private income and NHS income through directions on their accounts made by the Secretary of State for Health with the approval of HM Treasury to ensure this is transparent.

NHS: Private Sector

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether he plans to require foundation trust hospitals to share  (a) operating theatres and  (b) brain scanners with private health providers under his legislative proposals for NHS reform.

Simon Burns: The Health and Social Care Bill would empower Monitor to impose special licence conditions on a provider of national health service services 'licence holder' requiring that licence holder to provide another licence holder with access to particular services under terms that Monitor may specify. Decisions on the exercise of these powers would be a matter for Monitor.

Prostate Gland: Medical Treatments

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the best practice tariff will maintain equity between the  (a) transurethral resection of the prostate and  (b) holmium laser enucleation of the prostate treatments for prostate conditions.

Simon Burns: The characteristic of best practice that the best practice tariff is intended to incentivise is a higher day case rate. The best practice tariff does not discriminate between Transurethral Resection of the Prostate and Holmium Laser Enucleation of the Prostate treatments for prostate conditions, other than whether these procedures are undertaken as day cases.
	The 2011-12 best practice tariffs for treatment of the enlarged prostate have been developed with the support of clinicians, including the President of the British Association of Urological Surgeons.
	The draft 2011-12 tariffs were shared for 'sense check' in October 2010, and changes were subsequently made to the levels of the proposed tariff for resection of prostate by laser to reflect concerns that a day case rate target of 90% was overly ambitious for delivery in one year. A revised target of 30% was therefore agreed, and the draft 2011-12 tariff prices were increased accordingly.
	The 2011-12 tariff prices were published for 'road test' on 22 December, since when it has been brought to the Department's attention that the published best practice tariff price for resection of prostate by laser contained a typographical error. The October 2010 'sense check' prices for this procedure had been inadvertently included, rather than the revised prices that were agreed for 'road test'.
	The agreed prices for resection of prostate by laser will appear in the final tariff package for 2011-12 when it is published shortly.

Transition Programme

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 18 January 2011,  Official Report, column 736W, on transition programme, for what reason the information on the  (a) membership and  (b) frequency of meetings of the Commissioning Development Board was not placed in the Library; and if he will place that information in the Library.

Simon Burns: I regret that the information was not placed in the Library due to an administrative error. The information was placed in the Library on 15 February.

Transition Programme

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 18 January 2011,  Official Report, column 736W, on transition programme, what the  (a) names of,  (b) leaders of and  (c) participants in each primary workstream outlined in the Provider Development Delivery Strategy were.

Simon Burns: Ian Dalton CBE is the managing director for the provider development programme. Within this programme of work, there are two directors and the following primary workstreams:
	Bob Ricketts CBE, Director of Provider Policy: development of a new system of economic regulation; and support and enable the new provider landscape;
	Matthew Kershaw, Director of Provider Delivery: delivery of the provider landscape.
	In addition there are two cross-cutting workstreams that are the responsibility of Bob Ricketts and Matthew Kershaw. These are:
	develop leadership capacity to support the new provider landscape; and
	engagement and communication.
	The Provider Development Board (PDB) provides the formal governance for the delivery of the provider development programme, providing scrutiny of issues on behalf of the NHS management board (and taking provider development specific decisions within their remit). The PDB will agree the formal programme of work up to April 2012 for consideration by the NHS management board. The membership and the terms of reference of the PDB have already been placed in the Library.

Transition Programme

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 18 January 2011,  Official Report, column 736W, on transition programme 
	(1)  if he will make it his policy to place in the Library copies of  (a) agendas,  (b) minutes and  (c) board papers for future meetings of each of the constituent bodies of the transition programme within one week of such meetings taking place;
	(2)  if he will place in the Library copies of the  (a) agendas,  (b) minutes and  (c) board papers for meetings of each of the constituent bodies of the transition programme.

Simon Burns: The Department has made a commitment to publish summary minutes on the Department's website relating to meetings of each of the bodies outlined in the answer of 18 January 2011,  Official Report, column 736W, on transition programme (Departmental Board, DH Executive Board, Transition Programme Board, Commissioning Development Board and the Provider Development Board).
	We have no plans to routinely publish in the Library copies of the agendas, full minutes, and board papers for future meetings.

Transition Programme

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 18 January 2011,  Official Report, column 736W, on transition programme, if he will publish a list of all meetings or events which have taken place since 1 May 2010 between individuals named as members of the constituent bodies of the transition programme or officials working on their behalf and any employees, representatives or intermediaries of  (a) United Health,  (b) KPMG and  (c) Tribal Group, including for each such meeting (i) the names of those attending, (ii) the date on which each meeting took place, (iii) the location of each meeting or event, (iv) the purpose of each meeting, (v) topics discussed, (vi) the titles of any presentations or other documents produced for or at each meeting and (vii) the authors and main presenters of such presentations or other documents.

Simon Burns: The Department does not routinely collect this information and therefore the information requested could be collected only at disproportionate cost.

JUSTICE

Corruption: Business

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what plans he has to bring forward legislative proposals on corruption in international business.

Jonathan Djanogly: I refer the right hon. Member to the answer given by the Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice, my right hon. and learned Friend the Member for Rushcliffe (Mr Clarke) on 14 February 2011,  Official Report, column 581W.

Corston Review

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the continuing operational viability in 2011-12 of each of the projects arising from the recommendations of the Corston Review;
	(2)  what funding his Department has provided for projects arising from the recommendations of the Corston Review in 2010-11.

Crispin Blunt: The Ministry of Justice established a programme of work to divert from custody vulnerable women, who do not pose a risk to the public. Over £10 million has been provided by the Ministry of Justice in the period up to March 2011 to fund women's community based services. Plans for sustainable funding in 2011-12 are progressing. The National Offender Management Service (NOMS) has considered each of the projects on the basis of:
	Performance in 2010-11;
	Demand for their services;
	Capability to deliver future objectives;
	Sustainability without NOMS funding.
	NOMS has also made a commitment from 2012-13 onwards to commission services that demonstrate their effectiveness in diverting women from custody. A full announcement will be made shortly.

Death Certificates: Fees and Charges

Stephen Mosley: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate he has made of the likely average fee to be charged for death certificates under the proposed new death certification process.

Anne Milton: I have been asked to reply.
	The Government's preferred option for funding the improved process of death certification, when introduced, is a single fee for certification of all deaths-irrespective of whether death is followed by burial, cremation or other form of disposal. The level of fee, which will be set on the basis of full cost recovery, has yet to be determined. However, the fee is likely to be lower than current cremation certification fees, which it will replace. As cremation accounts for 73% of all disposals, the Government expect that most bereaved families will pay less under the new arrangements.

Harassment: Restraining Order

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice 
	(1)  how many persons were found guilty under Section 5(5) of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 of breaching a restraining order and given  (a) a term of imprisonment,  (b) a fine and  (c) a term of imprisonment and a fine in each year since 1998;
	(2)  how many persons in England and Wales were made the subject of a restraining order under section 5 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 in each year since 1998.

Crispin Blunt: The number of persons found guilty at all courts, sentenced to a fine, immediate custody, immediate custody and issued with a fine, or given a restraining order under section 5 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, in England and Wales, 1998 to 2009 (latest available) can be viewed in tables 1 and 2.
	Data for 2010 are planned for publication in the spring of 2011.
	
		
			  Table 1: The number of persons found guilty at all courts and the number of persons issued with a fine, given a custodial sentence or given a custodial sentence and issued with a fine, under section 5 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, in England and Wales, 1998 to 2009( 1,2,3) 
			  Offence description  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008( 4)  2009 
			 Breach of a restraining order 
			 Found guilty 274 461 557 539 604 687 766 880 873 738 821 1,463 
			 Sentenced(5) 273 471 561 534 597 689 760 876 861 784 748 1,328 
			 of which: 
			 Fine 53 89 86 93 101 119 112 114 87 55 77 141 
			 Immediate custody 123 206 226 193 206 226 282 289 308 269 260 456 
			 Immediate custody and a fine(6) (8)- (8)- (8)- (8)- (8)- (8)- (8)- (8)- (8)- (8)- (8)- (8)- 
			 Other sentences(7) 97 176 249 248 290 344 366 473 466 460 411 731 
			 (1)The following statutes were used for the corresponding offence: Breach of a Restraining Order Protection from Harassment Act 1997, s.5 (2) The figures given in the table on court proceedings relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4) Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008. (5) The sentenced column may exceed those found guilty as it may be the case that a defendant found guilty, and committed for sentence at the Crown court, may be sentenced in the following year. (6) Where immediate custody was the principal disposal and the fine was a secondary disposal. Includes: absolute/conditional discharge, community sentence, suspended sentence and otherwise dealt with. (8) = Nil  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services, Ministry of Justice 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: The number of persons given a restraining order at all courts under section 5 of the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, in England and Wales,  1998 to 2009( 1,2,3) 
			  Offence description -Breach of a restraining order  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008( 4)  2009 
			 Restraining order 11 18 22 22 33 58 46 73 81 76 33 102 
			 (1) The following statute and corresponding offence description were used: Offence code 831: Breach of a Restraining Order Protection from Harassment Act 1997, s.5 (2) The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom this sentence was the principal disposal, but also where it was given a secondary or other disposal. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4) Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008.  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services, Ministry of Justice

Lancaster Prison

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice which body will have responsibility for the maintenance of HM Prison Lancaster following its closure.

Crispin Blunt: It was announced on 13 January 2011 that the prison at Lancaster Castle will close. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) leases the castle from the Duchy of Lancaster. The lease with the Duchy of Lancaster provides for a three-year period of notice. Responsibility for maintenance during any period of notice remains with the MoJ.

Legal Aid Scheme

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what estimate his Department has made of the effects of the implementation of his proposed changes to the legal aid scheme on the number of litigants in person involved in court proceedings; and what assessment he has made of the effects of any change in the number of such litigants on the costs of HM Courts Service.

Jonathan Djanogly: We are currently reviewing the existing data and research into the impact of litigants in person on the courts. This will contribute to the analysis in the final impact assessments due to be published alongside the legal aid consultation response in spring 2011. There will also be a post-implementation review of any reforms.

Legal Aid Scheme

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what proportion of legal aid recipients were  (a) women,  (b) black,  (c) Asian and  (d) minority ethnic in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

Jonathan Djanogly: Available information on the gender and ethnicity of legal aid recipients is set out in the following tables.
	
		
			  Civil legal  aid 
			  Percentage 
			   Legal help  Civil representation  All civil legal aid 
			 Female 54 58 55 
			 
			 Black 12 5 11 
			 Asian 7 4 7 
			 BAME 29 14 27 
		
	
	
		
			  Criminal legal aid 
			   Percentage 
			 Female 13 
			 Unknown/prefer not to say 13 
			   
			 Black 5 
			 Asian 4 
			 Minority Ethnicity 9 
			 Unknown/prefer not to say 21 
		
	
	Police station figures are not included in the above as a grant of legal aid is not required.

Legal Aid: Landlord and Tenant

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many people received legal aid in respect of a tenant's right to live in quiet enjoyment in the latest 12 months for which figures are available.

Jonathan Djanogly: The LSC does not record the number of people who receive legal aid. Instead it records the number of 'acts of assistance' for which funding was granted. One individual may receive a number of separate acts of assistance, and one act of assistance can help more than one person. During the financial year 2009-10, there were 2,393 claims made under legal help and 390 civil representation cases closed relating to housing harassment, which includes wrongful or unlawful eviction.

Legal Aid: Repossession

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many repossession cases were  (a) successfully and  (b) unsuccessfully contested by the defendant in the most recent 12 month for which figures are available; and how many and what proportion of these defendants had legal representation.

Jonathan Djanogly: During 2010 there were 210,392 landlord and mortgage repossession claims issued in the county courts of England and Wales. However, the Ministry of Justice does not hold figures centrally on how many of these were contested by the defendant.
	While the administrative computer systems used in the county courts contain the incidence of claims issued and orders made in repossession cases, they do not specifically hold information about whether the cases were contested by the defendant. It may be possible to obtain this information through the examination of individual case files but this would incur disproportionate cost.

Legal Aid: Social Security Benefits

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many welfare claimants received legal aid in respect of a benefit claim in the most recent 12 month period for which figures are available.

Jonathan Djanogly: The LSC does not record the number of people who receive legal aid. Instead it records the number of 'acts of assistance' for which funding was granted. One individual may receive a number of separate acts of assistance, and one act of assistance can help more than one person.
	During the financial year 2009-10, there were 110,164 claims made under legal help and 27 civil representation cases closed under the welfare benefits category of law.

National Offender Management Service: Qualifications

Gordon Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many senior managers employed in the head office at the National Offender Management Service have  (a) experience of and  (b) a qualification in probation work.

Crispin Blunt: Information about the qualifications and experience of individual members of staff is not held centrally. To obtain the information requested would involve identifying and contacting sources of information in many different locations and would thus incur disproportionate cost.

Prisoners: Foreign Nationals

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what information his Department holds on the effectiveness of the rehabilitation of foreign national prisoners convicted in courts in England and Wales who served custodial sentences in  (a) England and Wales and  (b) their country of origin.

Crispin Blunt: The Ministry of Justice does not collate specific information on the effectiveness of the rehabilitation of foreign national prisoners. Research studies to date have not separately assessed effectiveness for this group of prisoners, and due to the comparatively small numbers involved, the production of meaningful data would also be problematic.

Social Security Benefits: Tribunals

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many and what proportion of welfare benefit tribunal cases were  (a) won and  (b) lost by the claimant in the most recent 12 month period for which figures are available; and in how many cases in each category did the claimant have legal representation.

Jonathan Djanogly: The following tables provide information on the number and proportion of social security and child support cases heard and their outcomes between October 2009 and September 2010 and for the same period the number of cases where the appellant had legal representation. This is the most recent 12 month period for which statistics have been published.
	
		
			  All outcomes 
			  October 2009 to September 2010 
			   Number  Percentage 
			 Cleared at hearing 238,700 - 
			 Decision in favour of the appellant 87,500 37 
			 Decision of 1st tier Agency upheld 149,000 62 
		
	
	
		
			  Outcome-with representative( 1) 
			  October 2009 to September 2010 
			   Number  Percentage 
			 Cleared at hearing 87,800 - 
			 Decision in favour of the appellant 47,300 54 
			 Decision of 1st tier Agency upheld 39,200 45 
			 (1 )Figures with representatives show appellants who had a representative; however, this does not necessarily confirm the representative was in attendance on the day of hearing. 
		
	
	
		
			  Outcome-no representative 
			  October 2009 to September 2010 
			   Number  Percentage 
			 Cleared at hearing 151,000 - 
			 Decision in favour of the appellant 40,200 27 
			 Decision of 1st tier Agency upheld 109,900 72

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

BSkyB: News Corporation

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 20 January 2011,  Official Report, column 879W, on News Corporation, if he will ensure that the information he plans to publish on the process surrounding the proposed News Corporation takeover of BSkyB includes all  (a) telephone calls,  (b) letters,  (c) meetings and  (d) other communications between Ministers and officials of his Department and News Corporation and BSkyB.

Jeremy Hunt: I refer the hon. Member to the written statement I made to the House on 25 January 2011,  Official Report, column 3WS, setting out what I have published so far. So far as possible, I will release all relevant further information relating to this merger which has not already been published on or shortly after the time the final decision is taken.
	In addition information about Ministers' meetings with external organisations is published on the DCMS website on a quarterly basis.

Digital Economy Act 2010

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what assessment he has made of the effects on the digital economy of implementation of sections 3 to 16 of the Digital Economy Act 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Vaizey: The initial obligations under the Digital Economy Act (DEA) are aimed at reducing the volume of online copyright infringement on networks. We expect that the successful implementation of these measures will bring about a reduction in unlawful file-sharing activity and, in turn, bring about an increase in revenues generated by content owners and consequent investment in content creation.
	Alongside the DEA measures to reduce the unlawful use of content online, industry will need to develop strong, legitimate content offerings in order to deliver all the benefits that the digital economy has to offer. This will benefit consumers by giving them greater choice of lawful content services, delivered in the way they want and at a price that is fair and reasonable for all parties.

Licensing

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport 
	(1)  for how long he anticipates the contract with Arqiva for licensing spectrum to the programme making and special events sector to run; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  when interested parties will be informed of the arrangements for the next tender process to provide spectrum licensing to the programme making and special events sector; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  when he expects the terms of the contract with Arqiva to provide spectrum licensing to the programme making and special events sector to be confirmed; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  when he expects the contract for licensing spectrum to the programme making and special events sector to next be put out to tender; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Vaizey: Ofcom recently concluded a tender process for the contract to provide licensing and spectrum management services to the programme-making and special events sector. The contract has been awarded to Arqiva Ltd, and Ofcom is in the process of finalising the contract, subject to terms and conditions. The contract will run for five years from when it enters into force, subject to Ofcom's rights of early termination.
	Ofcom does not have any plans to re-tender in the near future. Should Ofcom decide to commence another award process for the provision of spectrum licensing for programme-making and special events, interested parties would be informed as appropriate.

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport when he plans to reply to the letter from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on 9 December 2010 with regard to Ms J Vickers.

John Penrose: I refer the right hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 25 January 2011,  Official Report, column 148W.
	Where possible all correspondence sent from the Department is done so by e-mail. The answer in question was e-mailed directly to the parliamentary office of the right hon. Member on 23 December 2010, and again in response to the parliamentary question referred to above.
	I will ensure a third copy of the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport's response is sent to the right hon. Member. If he still does not receive it, he should send a member of his parliamentary staff to my office and my officials will be happy to hand over a paper copy of the reply personally.

Mobile Phones: Harassment

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport if he will discuss with mobile phone operators the introduction of a protocol to handle instances of menacing or harassing calls received from mobile phones in circumstances where the caller has withheld the number.

Edward Vaizey: All UK mobile network operators already provide extensive guidance on their websites on the handling of nuisance phone calls as well as supplementary advice being available on the Ofcom website.

Newspaper Press

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport how many local newspapers have closed in each region in each of the last 20 years.

Edward Vaizey: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport does not keep records on the number of closures, or start-ups, of newspapers.

Tourism: Marketing

Brandon Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport which  (a) companies and  (b) other organisations have pledged a contribution to the tourism marketing fund; and how much has been pledged to date.

John Penrose: Further to the answer I gave my hon. Friend on 25 January 2011,  Official Report, column 149W, VisitBritain are continuing their discussions with companies concerning potential offers. This is a four-year programme, and VisitBritain do not expect to have contracted the full amount for year one until March. These are commercially sensitive negotiations and further details will not be available until then.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Energy: Business

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will assess the merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to require third party energy intermediaries to sign up to a code of conduct for the purposes of reducing the mis-selling of energy contracts to small and medium-sized enterprises.

Charles Hendry: The Government support Ofgem's recommendation that suppliers and customers should always consider a third party intermediary's practices prior to entering into a business arrangement. Bodies such as the Utilities Intermediaries Association (UIA) operate voluntary industry codes of practice for their members, and promote appropriate standards of behaviour. The Office of Fair Trading and Trading Standards Services have a joint duty to enforce the Business Protection from Misleading Marketing Regulations (BPRs), which prohibit businesses from advertising products in a way that misleads traders and set out conditions under which comparative advertising, to both consumers and business, is permitted.

Energy: Business

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will bring forward proposals to require energy suppliers to be responsible for the sales methods used by third party intermediaries selling contracts to small and medium-sized enterprises.

Charles Hendry: Currently we have no plans to bring forward the proposals my hon. Friend asks about. The Government support Ofgem's recommendation that suppliers and customers should always consider a third party intermediary's practices prior to entering into a business arrangement.

Energy: Business

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change if he will direct Ofgem to review its procedure for complaints against third party intermediaries by small and medium-sized enterprises to retain recordings of all telephone calls made during a complaint.

Charles Hendry: Brokering contracts between energy suppliers and customers is not a licensable activity and therefore is not directly regulated by Ofgem. Complaints from business customers about the marketing activities used by third party intermediaries can be investigated by the Office of Fair Trading and local authority Trading Standards Service, who have the powers in this area. I have asked Ofgem, in the context of carrying out its Retail Market Review, to consider if any additional measures would be appropriate in respect of the relationship suppliers have with third party intermediaries.

Energy: EU Action

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the answer of 3 February 2011,  Official Report, columns 910-11W, on energy, if he will work with his European counterparts to ensure that the indicative EU-wide target to reduce primary energy use by 20 per cent. by 2020 through improvements in energy efficiency is made legally binding as part of the European Commission's review of the EU Energy Efficiency Action Plan.

Gregory Barker: In common with other member states, the Government do not believe that making the EU target legally binding is appropriate or necessary to deliver improvements in energy efficiency. We believe that the Commission should instead focus their forthcoming review of the EU Energy Efficiency Action Plan on facilitating practical action to deliver real energy savings.

Energy: Housing

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change in what proportion of privately-rented properties in the constituency of Brighton, Pavilion his Department expects energy efficiency measures to be installed through the Green Deal.

Gregory Barker: We expect the Green Deal to be taken up widely across all building sectors and tenures, including privately rented properties in the constituency of Brighton, Pavilion. It will offer private landlords a real opportunity to invest in the energy efficiency of their properties at no up-front cost to themselves.
	We are also creating powers in the Energy Bill, which will require landlords to make reasonable energy efficiency improvements.
	We intend to use these powers from 2015 if we do not see voluntary improvement in energy efficiency under the Green Deal.

Energy: National Policy Statements

Tessa Munt: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether he plans to discuss with the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs the findings of the Report by the Energy and Climate Change Committee on the revised draft national policy statements on energy on the Holford Rules in formulating the Government's response to that report.

Charles Hendry: My officials will consult with DEFRA officials and those of other Government Departments before the Government's response to the Energy and Climate Change Committee report on the energy National Policy Statements is published.

International Climate Fund

Karen Lumley: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what contribution his Department plans to make to the international climate finance fund over the period of the comprehensive spending review; and if he will make a statement.

Gregory Barker: The spending review provides a total of £2.9 billion of international climate finance-called the international climate fund (ICF)-over the spending review period. The fund will be managed collectively by the relevant Departments. From DECC's budget, we will contribute £l billion of the total.

Solar Power: Feed-in Tariffs

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the proportion of solar photovoltaic projects supported through the feed-in tariff scheme that were defined as large-scale since the scheme's inception.

Gregory Barker: Data provided by Ofgem shows a total of three large-scale (over 50kW) solar photovoltaic (PV) schemes accredited for Feed-In Tariffs (FITs) since the scheme started in April 2010. All of these schemes have a total installed capacity of between 50kW and l00kW, however there is a considerably larger number of such schemes currently in the planning system or awaiting accreditation.

Solar Power: Feed-in Tariffs

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assessment he has made of the likely effect of the inclusion of solar photovoltaic projects in his review of feed-in tariffs on  (a) the solar photovoltaic industry and  (b) levels of employment in that industry.

Gregory Barker: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, my right hon. Friend the Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable) announced the Feed-in tariffs (FITs) review including fast-track consideration for large-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) on 7 February 2010. Detailed proposals on the fast track review are being worked up and will be published for consultation next month. We will use the review to gather evidence on the likely impact of our proposals. We want to deliver an outcome that provides a sustainable future for industry.

Warm Front Scheme: Enfield

Nick de Bois: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many people in Enfield North constituency have participated in the Warm Front scheme in each of the last five years.

Gregory Barker: The following table shows the number of households assisted under the Warm Front scheme in the constituency of Enfield North in each of the last five years.
	
		
			  Enfield North constituency 
			  Scheme year  Number of assisted households 
			 2005-06 196 
			 2006-07 270 
			 2007-08 462 
			 2008-09 399 
			 2009-10 331 
			 2010-11(1) 140 
			 (1) Up to 31 December 2010

Warm Home Discount Scheme

Rehman Chishti: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change how many submissions were made to his Department's Warm Home Discount consultation; how many such submissions called for terminally ill people to be included in the core group to receive the Warm Home Discount automatically; and when his Department plans to publish its response to the consultation.

Gregory Barker: DECC received 1,847 responses to the consultation on Warm Home Discount. 1,800 of these were emails calling for terminally ill people to be included in the core group. A response will be published in due course.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many contacts between UK forces and the Taliban there have been in Helmand province in each month since April 2009.

Nick Harvey: holding answer 24 January 2011
	The numbers of troops in contact events involving the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and insurgents in the Task Force Helmand area of operations in Helmand Province for each complete month from April 2009 for which verified data are available are shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Month  Number of contacts( 1) 
			  2009  
			 April 160 
			 May 230 
			 June 460 
			 July 450 
			 August 430 
			 September 450 
			 October 360 
			 November 430 
			 December 490 
			   
			  2010  
			 January 560 
			 February 470 
			 March 520 
			 April 220 
			 May 540 
			 June 740 
			 July 910 
			 August 990 
			 September 800 
			 October 790 
			 November 160 
			 December 370 
			 (1) Rounded to the nearest 10 
		
	
	ISAF forces operating in Task Force Helmand's area of operations come from a number of different nations, which often operate closely alongside each other and alongside Afghan Army and police units. Without undertaking a detailed assessment of each engagement, it is not possible to define precisely in every case whether a contact involved UK forces, our ISAF partners, or Afghan units. Data are therefore collected on the number of incidents involving ISAF forces in Task Force Helmand's area of operations without attempting to identify the nationality of the forces involved in the contact.
	These data are based on information derived from a number of sources and can only be an estimate, not least because of the difficulties in ensuring a consistent interpretation of the basis for collating statistics in a complex fast-moving multinational operational environment. The data are subject to change as more information becomes available.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many ISAF-trained Afghan National Army personnel worked in partnership with UK forces between  (a) 18 May 2009 and 4 October 2009,  (b) 5 October 2009 and 21 February 2010,  (c) 22 February 2010 and 11 July 2010 and  (d) 12 July 2010 and 28 November 2010.

Nick Harvey: The information is not held in the format requested. However, the number of ISAF-trained Afghan National Army (ANA) personnel "present for duty", or available to conduct tasks in the Task Force Helmand (TFH) area of operations, is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Period  Total number of ANA in Task Force Helmand area of operations  Reductions in Task Force Helmand area of operations 
			 18 May 2009 to 4 October 2009 2,351 - 
			 5 October 2009 to 21 February 2010 2,312 - 
			 22 February 2010 to 11 July 2010 2,260 March 2010: Musa Qaleh transferred to US area of operations. 
			   June 2010: Kajaki transferred to US area of operations. 
			 12 July 2010 to 28 November 2010 2,102 October 2010: Sangin transferred to US area of operations 
		
	
	During the periods of time requested, the TFH area of operations was decreasing in size. Consequently, while the number of ANA personnel in the table appears to be decreasing overall, in fact there has been an improvement in the number of ANA in the TFH area of operations and in Helmand as a whole.
	These figures are based on monthly averages and we are unable to ascertain daily figures. These data are based on information derived from a number of sources and can only be an estimate, not least because of the difficulties in ensuring a consistent interpretation of the basis for collating statistics in a complex fast-moving multinational operational environment. The data are subject to change as more information becomes available.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will consider the merits of making regular reports to Parliament on the deployed number of  (a) ISAF-trained Afghan National Army personnel,  (b) ISAF-trained Afghan National Army personnel working in partnership with UK forces and  (c) ISAF-in-training Afghan National Army personnel.

Nick Harvey: The development of the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) is a key element in delivering our national security objectives in Afghanistan. For this reason we ensure that the regular written reports we provide to the House on Afghanistan include updates on the growth and development of the ANSF, including in the UK area of operations.
	My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Defence, gave the latest of our quarterly oral updates to the House on 14 February 2010,  Official Report, columns 732-46), as the latest Quarterly Report as part of the Government's commitment to keep Parliament informed on progress made in Afghanistan.

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Patrick Mercer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many fatalities there were in Afghanistan among ISAF-trained Afghan National Army personnel 
	(1)  working in Afghanistan in partnership with  (a) UK forces,  (b) US forces and  (c) Canadian forces between (i) 18 May 2009 and 4 October 2009, (ii) 5 October 2009 and 21 February 2010, (iii) 22 February 2010 and 11 July 2010 and (iv) 12 July 2010 and 28 November 2010;
	(2)  between  (a) 18 May 2009 and 4 October 2009,  (b) 5 October 2009 and 21 February 2010,  (c) 22 February 2010 and 11 July 2010 and  (d) 12 July 2010 and 28 November 2010.

Nick Harvey: This is a matter for the Government of Afghanistan. We do not hold information on the number of Afghan National Security Forces fatalities.

Armed Forces: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the pension entitlement will be of a member of the Armed Forces Pension Scheme who retires after 30 years' full-time service on a salary of  (a) £10,000,  (b) £15,000,  (c) £20,000,  (d) £25,000,  (e) £30,000,  (f) £40,000 and  (e) £50,000 if the pension is uprated in line with (i) the retail prices index and (ii) the consumer prices index.

Andrew Robathan: I refer the hon. Member to the answer the Minister for International Security Strategy, my hon. Friend the Member for Aldershot (Mr Howarth), gave on 17 January 2011,  Official Report, columns 587-589W, to the hon. Member for West Dunbartonshire (Gemma Doyle) and hon. Member for North Durham (Mr Jones).

Armed Forces: Pensions

Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the likely savings to the Armed Forces Pension Scheme of the proposed indexation according to the consumer prices index  (a) in 2010-11 and  (b) in the next (i) 10, (ii) 20, (iii) 25 and (iv) 30 years.

Andrew Robathan: The change in indexation from retail prices index (RPI) to consumer prices index (CPI) will not come into effect until April 2011. No assessment of the kind requested can be made as future movements of the RPI and CPI rates are not known.

Christmas Island: Radioactive Waste

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the location is of the  (a) toxic and  (b) radiologically-contaminated waste recovered as a result of the remediation programme conducted on Christmas Island following the nuclear tests conducted in the 1950s; what site licences cover the disposals; and what the cost to the public purse was of the clean-up and remediation programme.

Andrew Robathan: The majority of waste recovered was inert and largely comprised of metal.
	Toxic or otherwise hazardous waste, including radioactive materials were transported back to the UK for disposal.
	Lead, asbestos and 'exempt' radioactive radium wastes were consigned to landfill in Middlesbrough, at a facility suitably licensed to receive this material. Some 18.7 tonnes of uncontaminated lead was recycled at South Darley. Low level radioactive radium waste was sent via Winfrith, an organisation licensed to handle such material, to the UK low level waste repository in Drigg, Cumbria, which is licensed to accept such waste. The radioactive waste largely consisted of luminised dials from abandoned vehicles.
	The cost of the clean-up and remediation programme was £9.1 million. The cost has risen from that previously given in answers to parliamentary questions due to the resolution of outstanding contractual issues.

Defence: Procurement

Stephen Barclay: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what the  (a) names,  (b) job titles and  (c) dates of office were of the senior responsible owners for the Typhoon project;
	(2)  pursuant to the answer of 23 November 2010,  Official Report, columns 221-2W, on defence: procurement, who the senior responsible officers (SROs) were for the  (a) Nimrod MRA4,  (b) future integrated soldier technology,  (c) Queen Elizabeth class carrier and  (d) future rapid effect system project; and between what dates each served as SRO.

Peter Luff: holding answer 27 January 2011
	Further to the answer given by the Minister for Defence Personnel, Welfare and Veterans, my right hon. Friend the Member for South Leicestershire (Mr Robathan) on 4 February 2011,  Official Report, column 990W, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence has written to the Chair of the Public Accounts Committee providing the information requested. A copy of the Permanent Secretary's letter to the Committee will be placed in the Library of the House.

Defence: Sales

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what serviceable  (a) aircraft,  (b) vessels and  (c) weapons systems his Department has sold since 1997; and how much it received from each such sale.

Gerald Howarth: I will write to the hon. Member shortly.
	 Substantive answer from Gerald Howarth to Andrew Rosindell:
	Further to the holding response I provided to your question about serviceable aircraft, vessels and weapons systems that have been sold since 1997 (Official Report dated 19 January 2011; column 826W), I am writing to provide a substantive response.
	Serviceable equipment is characterised as that which has been sold to other governments for continued use as defence assets rather than those sold to commercial enterprises, either for use in another capacity or for recycling. Sales to other governments have the potential to strengthen international relationships; generate income that can be re-invested in defence; allows other governments to contribute to international security; and can also provide UK industry with opportunities to undertake some of the equipment regeneration work to meet the customer's requirements.
	Details of aircraft, vessels (surface warships and submarines) and stand alone weapons systems that have been sold to other governments since 1997 are enclosed at Annex A.
	I hope this is helpful.
	Annex A-Dated January 2011
	
		
			  Sales of defence equipment to other governments since 1997 
			   Equipment  Purchaser  Revenue (£ million) 
			   Aircraft   
			 1997 6 x Wessex helicopters Uruguay Information no longer held 
			 1999 2 x Hercules Sri Lanka 64.0 (combined) 
			 2003 3 x Hercules Austria 34.0 (combined) 
			 2005 1 x Hercules Netherlands Information no longer held 
			 
			   Vessels (surface warships and submarines)   
			 1997 HMS Plover (Patrol vessel) Philippines 7.5 (combined) 
			  HMS Peacock (Patrol Vessel)   
			  HMS Starling (Patrol Vessel)   
			 1998 HMS Upholder (Submarine) Canada 227.4 (combined) 
			  HMS Unicorn (Submarine)   
			  HMS Ursula (Submarine)   
			  HMS Unseen (Submarine)   
			 2000 HMS Bicester (Mine Countermeasure) Greece 10.0 (combined) 
			  HMS Berkely (Mine Countermeasure)   
			  HMS Orkney (Patrol Vessel) Trinidad and Tobago 1.5 
			 2001 HMS Orwell (Patrol Vessel) Guyana 1.5 
			 2002 HMS London (Type 22 Frigate) Romania 116.0 (combined) 
			  HMS Coventry (Type 22 Frigate)   
			 2003 HMS Shetland (Patrol Vessel) Bangladesh 8.0 (combined) 
			  HMS Alderney (Patrol Vessel)   
			  HMS Anglesey (Patrol Vessel)   
			  HMS Lindisfarne (Patrol Vessel)   
			  HMS Guernsey (Patrol Vessel)   
			 2003 HMS Sheffield (Type 22 Frigate) Chile 27.0 
			 2005 HMS Marlborough (Type 23 Frigate) Chile 134.0 (combined) 
			  HMS Norfolk (Type 23 Frigate)   
			  HMS Grafton (Type 23 Frigate)   
			 2007 HMS Sandown (Minehunter) Estonia 32.0 (combined) 
			  HMS Bridport (Minehunter)   
			  HMS Inverness (Minehunter)   
			  RFA Sir Galahad (Landing Ship Logistics) Brazil 5.2 
			 2008 RFA Sir Bedivere ((Landing Ship Logistics) Brazil 10.0 
			  HMS Cottesmore (Mine Countermeasure) Lithuania €155.0 (this sale was concluded in euros rather than sterling) 
			  HMS Dulverton (Mine Countermeasure)   
			 2010 HMS Dumbarton Castle (Patrol Vessel) Bangladesh 2.4 (combined) 
			  HMS Leeds Castle (Patrol Vessel)   
			 
			   Weapons  s ystems   
			 2001 20 x Rapier Cascade Missile System Australia 0.68 
			  Notes:  1. Sales agreements are negotiated on an individual basis and they are never "like-for-like". For example, some sales may include onboard systems, training and spare equipment support while others will exclude these elements. Comparisons between the sales of similar equipment should not, therefore, be made.  2. The costs provided represent the total combined revenue for the MOD and its industrial partners who, for example, carry out the work to regenerate the equipment.

Depleted Uranium

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many depleted uranium shells were fired into the Irish sea from ranges operated by his Department in each year since 2007.

Nick Harvey: 20 depleted uranium shells were test-fired from the Ministry of Defence-owned Kirkcudbright Range (in Scotland) into the Solway Firth, which feeds into the Irish sea, on 11 and 12 March 2008. No other depleted uranium test firings have taken place since.

Munitions

Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how much his Department expects to spend on loitering munitions in 2010-11;
	(2)  whether he is reviewing his Department's contracts for loitering munitions;
	(3)  what discussions his Department is having with defence contractors responsible for loitering munitions;
	(4)  if he will make it his policy to announce any changes to contracts for procurement of loitering munitions between his Department and defence contractors.

Peter Luff: The Ministry of Defence expects to spend some £50 million on loitering munitions during the financial year 2010-11.
	As part of normal business, we conduct regular and ongoing engagements with prime contractors, including MBDA for the supply of loitering munitions.
	There are currently no plans to review contracts for loitering munitions. However, as part of our wider contract renegotiating strategy, all major equipment procurements will be reviewed for possible savings measures.
	The Department's approach to announcing any contractual changes relating to loitering munitions will continue to be subject to the usual processes and conditions governing the procurement of war-like stores.

Munitions

Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimates his Department has made on potential cost savings in the procurement of loitering munitions equipment.

Peter Luff: The United Kingdom's loitering munition capability is currently being procured as part of the Department's wider portfolio approach towards acquiring complex weapons. This approach was launched in April 2010 and will secure significant efficiencies of some £1.2 billion across the breadth of the complex weapons portfolio over the next 10 years and is designed to meet the United Kingdom's military requirement and safeguard our operational sovereignty.

Nimrod Aircraft

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what airborne  (a) electronic intelligence and  (b) intelligence, surveillance, target co-operation and reconnaissance capability will remain to HM Armed Forces after the withdrawal of the Nimrod R1; when the Nimrod R1 will be withdrawn; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Luff: After the withdrawal of the Nimrod R1 on 31 March 2011 the following airborne intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance capabilities will remain available to assist our armed forces: Sentry, Sentinel, Tornado GR 4 when fitted with a RAPTOR or Litening III pod, Typhoon when fitted with a Litening III pod, Sea King Mk7, Reaper Remotely Piloted Air System and Hermes 450 UAS.

Nimrod Aircraft

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many specialist RAF personnel formally employed on the MRA4 project will be  (a) retained and  (b) made redundant.

Peter Luff: At the time of the Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) announcement there were approximately 242 RAF personnel directly involved in the MRA4 project. The number of Nimrod-related personnel to be made redundant under the Regular Armed Forces Redundancy Programme will not be known until the process has concluded. In line with normal practice, where a role comes to an end, the RAF will seek to reassign Nimrod-related personnel elsewhere within the service. However, in order to sustain the long-term balance and structure of the RAF, while implementing personnel reductions planned as part of SDSR, some personnel may be made redundant. We will seek to achieve this through voluntary applications, but it may be necessary to make some reductions through compulsory redundancies.

Nimrod Aircraft

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reason the physical destruction of the MRA4 airframes was initiated; and by whom the decision was taken to release images of this process to the media.

Peter Luff: Having taken the decision not to bring the Nimrod MR4A into service, I considered a range of options and concluded that the most cost-effective one was for the nine aircraft to be disposed of following recovery of equipment and systems that can be used elsewhere.
	Photographs of the dismantling process were not released by the Ministry of Defence to the media.

Nimrod Aircraft

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he is taking to preserve the  (a) airborne and  (b) ground-based components of the EL/8300 Electronic Support Measures system, together with other equipment formerly intended for the MRA4; what assessment he has made of the possibility of using such equipment in conjunction with alternative platforms; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Luff: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 21 January 2011,  Official Report, column 1024W, to the hon. Member for Moray (Angus Robertson).

Nimrod Aircraft

Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of the cancelled MRA4 aircraft had been flown; and how many flights in total had been undertaken.

Peter Luff: At the time of the decision not to bring the Nimrod MRA4 into service, only two of the nine production aircraft (PA04 and PA05) had flown. PA04 had completed 16 flights and PA05 had completed two flights. Both aircraft were piloted by BAE Systems crew and the Ministry of Defence had yet to complete its formal scrutiny of the aircraft design to allow the aircraft to enter into RAF service.

Nuclear Submarines

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of items for propulsion for the first three boats to be purchased ahead of the Trident replacement main gate decision.

Nick Harvey: The programme to replace the Vanguard class of submarines has yet to enter the assessment phase. During this phase a number of long-lead items relating to propulsion will be ordered so as not to put at risk the in-service date of the Trident replacement. Final decisions on exactly what long-lead items will be required, and when, have yet to be taken.
	The value of these long-lead items will be dependent on the work programme to be approved at initial gate. Moreover, we do not routinely publish figures for anticipated project expenditure as to do so would prejudice commercial interests.

Nuclear Weapons

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the status is of those contracts for long-lead items for the Trident replacement programme that were suspended in May 2010 pending the result of the value for money review.

Nick Harvey: The Ministry of Defence had no such contracts in place. An order worth approximately $3 million, placed on behalf of the United Kingdom between the United States Government and a United States supplier for materials related to propulsion, was deferred. Following the Value for Money review, which re-iterated our commitment to a replacement nuclear deterrent programme, the order was placed in November 2010.

Nuclear Weapons

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence by what date it will be necessary to make long-lead purchases prior to the Trident replacement main gate decision.

Nick Harvey: Contracts will be placed at the appropriate times throughout the assessment phase for those long-lead items that are included in initial gate to ensure we meet the in-service date of the Trident replacement.

Nuclear Weapons

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has for Parliamentary scrutiny of the Trident replacement programme prior to the main gate decision.

Nick Harvey: The Main Gate decision for the programme to replace the Vanguard class is expected to take place during the next Parliament. Therefore it will be for the next Government to decide on the parliamentary engagement required prior to Main Gate.

Strategic Defence and Security Review

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence from whom his Department received written submissions to the Strategic Defence and Security Review.

Liam Fox: I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave on 3 November 2010,  Official Report, column 856W, to the hon. Member for Carmarthen East and Dinefwr (Jonathan Edwards) and 20 December 2010,  Official Report, column 993W, to the hon. Member for North Durham (Mr Jones).

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER

Prime Minister

Peter Bone: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what responsibilities he has in the event that the Prime Minister is incapacitated and unable to carry out his duties.

Nicholas Clegg: The Prime Minister remains Prime Minister at all times but arrangements, appropriate at the time, would be put in place as necessary, as has been the practice under successive Administrations.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Animal Products: Clones

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her Department's policy is on the use of the offspring of cloned animals in food production.

James Paice: The Food Standards Agency's (FSA's) current interpretation of the EU Novel Foods Regulation is that approval should be sought before food from the offspring of cloned animals can be sold for human consumption. However, the European Commission interprets the legislation as applying only to food from cloned animals themselves.
	The Board of the FSA discussed animal cloning at its open meeting on 7 December and subsequently advised Ministers that there were no food safety grounds for regulating foods from the descendants of cloned cattle and pigs and that it was minded to change its interpretation of the legislation. The FSA sought the views of interested parties on changing its interpretation, with a closing date of 10 February, and is currently considering responses from interested parties.
	For the future, the Government shares the Commission's view that there should be no restrictions on the use of offspring of cloned animals.

Animal Welfare

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what her policy is on promotion of the neutering of cats and dogs by their owners.

James Paice: The statutory Codes of Practice on the Welfare of Cats and Dogs, made under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 and providing owners with information on how to meet the welfare needs of their animals, explain the benefits of having cats and dogs neutered and the drawbacks of not doing so. The Codes, together with the regular neutering promotion campaigns by animal welfare organisations, provide owners with ample opportunities to learn more about and take advantage of neutering their cat or dog.

Animal Welfare: Circuses

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she plans to announce proposals arising from her Department's public consultation on the use of wild animals in circuses.

James Paice: holding answer 15 February 2011
	We are currently considering the 13,000 or so responses to our consultation on the use of wild animals in circuses before we publish a summary. In the meantime, Lord Henley has been meeting with representatives of welfare groups and the circus industry. An industry body has proposed a self-regulatory system, but no final decisions have yet been made.

Arctic Resources

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will make it her policy to call for  (a) an end to the exploitation of Arctic resources and  (b) no further resource extraction to be permitted in the Arctic region until the completion of research into the potential risks of such extraction; and if she will work with her European counterparts to develop a co-ordinated EU policy to this effect.

Charles Hendry: I have been asked to reply.
	No. We fully recognise the need to ensure protection of the Arctic region, while also noting that environmentally sensitive exploitation of its oil and gas resources has the potential to play an important role in the UK's and wider global energy security. Decisions on resource extraction in the region are also primarily a matter for the Arctic states concerned. We therefore support such extraction so long as robust environmental and safety standards are applied.

Birds

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the  (a) effects of and  (b) factors underlying the decline in the size of the songbird population.

Richard Benyon: We have not commissioned a specific study to assess the effects of songbird population declines. Ecosystems and their constituent species provide human societies with 'ecosystem services', such as the regulation of pollution, provision of clean water, food, recreation and general well-being. Species interactions within ecosystems are complex and so declines in songbird populations may affect the services delivered. The UK's National Ecosystem Assessment is an independent assessment of the ecosystem services we get from nature, how they have changed over the last 50 years and how the choices we make may affect them in the future. The assessment is due to report in spring 2011 and will inform the development of the Natural Environment White Paper.
	The reasons for the long-term declines in songbirds vary from species to species but in farmland habitats are relatively well understood and relate largely to the intensification of agriculture, such as the loss of spring-sown crops, weedy stubbles and hedges and the increased use of pesticides and fertilizers. These changes have reduced the availability of nest sites and food resources such as insects and seeds.
	Declines in other habitats are less well understood and we are funding ongoing research on woodland birds. Also through our conservation advisers, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, in partnership with bird conservation and research charities, we fund the majority of the monitoring that is summarised in the annual publication of the State of UK Birds which gives an overview of the recent patterns of change and the latest research to understand the underlying factors.

Circuses: Animal Welfare

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when she plans to publish the conclusions of the review of the use of wild animals in circuses.

James Paice: We are currently considering the 13,000 or so responses to our consultation on the use of wild animals in circuses before we publish a summary. In the meantime, Lord Henley has been meeting with representatives of welfare groups and the circus industry.

Common Fisheries Policy

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she plans to have with the European Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries on fish discards.

Richard Benyon: The UK is committed to reducing discards which are a clear waste of natural resources. This position is shared with Commissioner Damanaki (Maritime Affairs and Fisheries) who has publicly committed to tackling this unsustainable practice.
	The UK is at the forefront of tackling discards, taking action domestically and by working to identify solutions at an EU level. We have undertaken a number of initiatives that have delivered excellent results. Project 50%, a collaborative project between fishermen and Government saw discards in the South West sole fishery reduced by over 50%. We are also pioneering an alternative "catch quota" management system which is based on managing and monitoring what is caught not just what is landed. Cod discards by those vessels in the trial have been reduced significantly as participants have been incentivised to fish much more selectively.
	The common fisheries policy contributes significantly to the problem of discards and it is essential that it is fundamentally reformed. I have made this clear in my discussions with the Commissioner and am ensuring that crucial evidence gathered from the UK's discard reduction work is being used to influence and shape reform. I will be meeting the Commissioner and other European Ministers again on 1 March at a Discards summit; this will be another excellent opportunity for the UK to steer thinking and to pursue its aim of working to end this wasteful practice.

Dairy Farming

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many dairy farms there are in England; and what the average subsidy paid to each farm was in the latest period for which figures are available.

James Paice: Data from the June survey indicates that there were 9,739 dairy farms in England in 2009.
	Data from the Farm Business Survey for dairy farms in England shows that during the 12-month period ending February 2010, the average level of total support payment received by dairy farmers was £32,300. This figure includes an average 2009 single farm payment of £27,300 and agri-environment scheme payments which averaged just under £4,000 per farm. The remaining £1,000 comprised compensation for bovine tuberculosis and some other smaller payments.

Dangerous Dogs

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the annual cost to her Department was of kennelling dogs seized  (a) by Merseyside Police and  (b) nationally in 2010.

Richard Benyon: holding answer 11 February 2011
	No costs are incurred by DEFRA in respect of kennelling seized dogs. These costs are borne by the relevant police authority.

Departmental Information Officers

Eilidh Whiteford: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many  (a) press officers,  (b) internal communications officers,  (c) external communications officers,  (d) communications strategy officers and  (e) other positions with a communications remit were employed by (i) her Department, (ii) its agencies and (iii) each other non-departmental public body sponsored by her Department on the most recent date for which figures are available.

Richard Benyon: holding answer 9 February 2011
	Communication structures in DEFRA, its executive agencies and non-departmental public bodies are currently being reviewed and the sizes of teams are changing. For example, by 1 April 2011 the Environment Agency will have reduced communication directorate staff numbers by approximately 30%.
	The information set out in the following table was provided for a cross-Government exercise co-ordinated by Cabinet Office and HMT in March 2010. Job descriptions will vary from organisation to organisation.
	Detailed figures relating to smaller arm's length bodies are not held centrally and could be collated only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			   Number 
			  Press officers  
			 DEFRA 20.0 
			 Animal Health 1.5 
			 British Waterways 4.0 
			 CEFAS 0.3 
			 Environment Agency 31 
			 FERA 1.0 
			 Kew 0 
			 Natural England 5.0 
			 Rural Payments Agency 0.5 
			 VLA 0 
			 Total 63.3 
			   
			  Internal communications officers  
			 DEFRA 10.0 
			 Animal Health 1.5 
			 British Waterways 2.0 
			 CEFAS 0.2 
			 Environment Agency 13 
			 FERA 0 
			 Kew 0 
			 Natural England 4.5 
			 Rural Payments Agency 4.0 
			 VLA 2.5 
			 Total 37.7 
			   
			  External communication officers-Marketing  
			 DEFRA 10.0 
			 Animal Health 2.0 
			 British Waterways 8.0 
			 CEFAS 0 
			 Environment Agency 72 
			 FERA 4.5 
			 Kew 0 
			 Natural England 4.0 
			 Rural Payments Agency 1.5 
			 VLA 3.0 
			 Total 105 
			   
			  Communication strategy officers  
			 DEFRA 6.0 
			 Animal Health 1.5 
			 British Waterways 0 
			 CEFAS 0 
			 Environment Agency 77 
			 FERA 0 
			 Kew 0 
			 Natural England 0 
			 Rural Payments Agency 0 
			 VLA 0 
			 Total 84.5 
			   
			  Other communication positions includes managerial and support staff  
			 DEFRA 8.0 
			 Animal Health 3.0 
			 British Waterways 3.0 
			 CEFAS 0 
			 Environment Agency 24 
			 FERA 0 
			 Kew 4.0 
			 Natural England 6.0 
			 Rural Payments Agency 8.0 
			 VLA 2.0 
			 Total 58

Dogs: Electric Shock Equipment

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs by what date she expects her Department's research project on the implications for the welfare of dogs of electric shock collars to be completed; and what plans she has to publish recommendations arising from the project.

James Paice: DEFRA's study into the effect of pet training aids, specifically remote static pulse systems, on the welfare of domestic dogs will be completed later this year. As with all research, findings must be subject to peer review before publication takes place.

Forests

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which sites sold by the Forestry Commission in each constituency have been sold since May 2010; what the size was of each such site; and how much funding was raised from each sale.

James Paice: In May 2010 Ministers inherited a programme of forestry sales from the financial year 2010-11 which had already commenced. Both the criteria and list were drawn up by the previous administration. The coalition Government has committed to review the safeguards that are in place in order to secure public benefits. Accordingly the coalition Government has suspended the 2011-12 sales programme in order to ensure adequate protections are in place.
	The Forestry Commission does not record sales by constituency. The following table gives details, by county, of land sold by the Forestry Commission since May 2010.
	
		
			  Date of Sale  Wood name  County  AREA (ha)  Selling price (£) 
			 22 October 2010 College Wood, Biggleswade Bedfordshire 15 137,520 
			 30 September 2010 Whitfield Wood, Brackley Buckinghamshire 38 353,000 
			 15 December 2010 Stanley Beck, Wolsingham Rd County Durham 31 121,500 
			 24 January 2011 The Stang County Durham 525 3,253,444 
			 15 October 2010 Rigg Wood, Coniston Cumbria 16 116,000 
			 1 December 2010 High Loft Wood, Cartmel Fell Cumbria 23 156,550 
			 8 December 2010 Hoggarths Plantation, Ulverston Cumbria 27 205,000 
			 4 January 2011 Park Wood, Bassenthwaite Cumbria 42 250,000 
			 19 January 2011 Broomrigg Estate, Ainstable Cumbria 120 499,950 
			 26 January 2011 Park Wood, Bassenthwaite Cumbria 11 150,000 
			 3 February 2011 Cropple How Plantation, Ravenglass Cumbria 39 201,501 
			 3 December 2010 Croftmoor Plantation, Halwill Devon 12 98,000 
			 10 June 2010 Black Down, Dorchester Dorset 114 355,000 
			 8 September 2010 The Stang Durham 71 42,000 
			 20 August 2010 High Wood, Uckfield East Sussex 20 140,000 
			 1 February 2011 Boxall's and Cobden's Copse Hampshire 9 111,700 
			 12 October 2010 Buslingthorpe Wood Lincolnshire 22 115,908 
			 29 October 2010 Swanton Novers Wood Norfolk 172 315,000 
			 7 January 2011 Great Heath Plantation, Thursford Norfolk 41 183,667 
			 1 December 2010 Bonny Cliff Plantation, Faceby North Yorkshire 61 40,000 
			 8 December 2010 Birch Plantation, Towthorpe North Yorkshire 3 8,000 
			 25 January 2011 Kissthorn Wood, Sand Hutton North Yorkshire 3 35,162 
			 11 November 2010 Priesthay Wood, Brackley Northamptonshire 6 60,100 
			 22 December 2010 Wicken Wood, Lillingstone Lovell Northamptonshire 78 200,000 
			 26 October 2010 Darcliff Wood, Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire 18 75,000 
			 30 November 2010 Cutts Long Belt, Rufford Nottinghamshire 13 112,050 
			 7 December 2010 Annesley, Friezeland Nottinghamshire 20 70,000 
			 7 December 2010 Little Oak Plantation, Annesley Nottinghamshire 9 35,000 
			 7 October 2010 Pontesford Hill Shropshire 33 102,726 
			 3 December 2010 Acton Burnell Park, Shrewsbury Shropshire 84 150,000 
			 6 May 2010 Middle Hill, Chipstable Somerset 36 75,000 
			 25 June 2010 Hugset Wood, Barnsley South Yorkshire 33 150,105

Forests

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the contribution to biodiversity of established conifer plantations owned and managed by the Forestry Commission.

James Paice: holding answer 14 February 2011
	The publication 'Biodiversity in Britain's Planted Forests' (2003) brings together results from the Forestry Commission's Biodiversity Assessment Project to provide an in-depth assessment of the contribution of coniferous forests to biodiversity.
	The Forestry Commission's Forest Design Planning process makes assessment of all areas of the public forest estate including many nationally and internationally important areas of coniferous forest.

Forests: Deer

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment she has made of the effects on the welfare of deer of the implementation of her proposals for the disposal of Forestry Commission land.

James Paice: Deer occur in most woodland. The Deer Initiative, a broad stakeholder partnership, promotes best practice in deer management and offers advice to all landowners on this. The Forestry Commission England remains committed to continuing its support for the Deer Initiative.

Gangmasters Licensing Authority: Finance

Natascha Engel: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what funding her Department has allocated to the Gangmasters Licensing Authority over the Comprehensive Spending Review period.

James Paice: The indicative annual funding(1) allocations notified to the Gangmasters Licensing Authority (GLA) for the spending review period total £4.2 million in 2011-12, £4.0 million in 2012-13, £4.0 million in 2013-14 and £3.9 million in 2014-15, as set out in the following table.
	Indicative funding for 2011-12 remains at the same level as for 2010-11, and over the following three years, the proposed funding for enforcement carried out by GLA on behalf of Defra will remain at £2.6 million. However, the Grant in Aid provided to fund the cost of operating the GLA licensing scheme will be reduced annually so that by 2014-15 it will be approximately £0.35 million less than in 2011-12.
	The notification to GLA is on the basis that the resource allocations may need to be adjusted in the light of circumstances over the spending review period; and that commitments for 2011-12 should for now be held to 95% of the indicated allocation.
	
		
			  £ million 
			  Financial year  Grant in Aid  Enforcement  Total 
			 2011-12 1.634 2.597 4.231 
			 2012-13 1.418 2.597 4.015 
			 2013-14 1.376 2.597 3.973 
			 2014-15 1.291 2.597 3.888 
		
	
	This information is also available on the Defra website at:
	http://ww2.defra.gov.uk/corporate/about/reports
	(1 )All figures rounded to the nearest £100,000.

Inland Waterways: Avon

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent progress has been made in consideration of the application for cruiseway status for the Kennet and Avon Canal.

Richard Benyon: British Waterways has applied for a ministerial order under section 104(3) of the Transport Act 1968 (the Act) to be made in order to reclassify the 'remainder' parts of the Kennet and Avon canal to become a cruising waterway. Following public consultation as required under the Act, two objections to the order were received. A response from British Waterways to the issues raised in the objections was sought, and this was sent by DEFRA on 20 January 2011 to the bodies who had objected, with a request for them to confirm whether they would be content to withdraw their objections or to make any further comments. Responses have only just been received confirming neither objection had been withdrawn. A decision by the Secretary of State on whether to allow the application for an order by British Waterways will be made in due course.

Irish Sea: Pollution

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many incidents of ships illegally flushing their tanks in the Irish sea were reported to her Department in each of the past 10 years.

Michael Penning: I have been asked to reply.
	The Maritime and Coastguard Agency has not received any direct reports relating to incidents of ships illegally flushing tanks in the Irish sea over the last 10 years.

Irish Sea: Pollution

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many oil spills or leaks in the Irish Sea have been reported to her Department in each of the past 10 years; and what the type of leak was in each case.

Richard Benyon: Since 1 April 2010, the Marine Management Organisation has dealt with marine pollution incidents on behalf of DEFRA. DEFRA/MMO records for marine pollution go back to 2004, however, until January 2010 information such as location, quantity and source were not recorded for all spills. The following table shows data for the Irish sea from 2010:
	
		
			  Date  Location  Source  Type  Quantity 
			 21 December 2010 Walney offshore wind farm Remotely operated underwater vessel Hydraulic oil 8 litres 
			 1 November 2010 Walney offshore wind farm Unknown Hydraulic oil Unknown-light sheen reported 
			 26 September 2010 Morecambe gas field-18 nautical miles offshore Firewater pump Mineral gas oil 2,000 litres 
			 24 June 2010 Pwllheli Unknown Diesel Unknown-light sheen reported 
			 8 May 2010 Aberystwyth Yacht Diesel 1.5 gallons 
			 18 May 2010 Port Penrhyn Sunken fishing vessel Diesel 2 gallons 
		
	
	The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), acting on behalf of the Department for Transport, collects more detailed data on marine oil spills. The MCA commission the Advisory Committee on Protection of the Sea (ACOPS) to produce annual surveys of marine pollution attributed to shipping or offshore installations. These reports contain detailed information which is broken down by region (the Irish sea is one such region). The ACOPS reports are available online at:
	http://www.acops.org.uk/acops-reports/

National Nature Reserves

Bob Stewart: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions she has had on the potential sale of National Nature Reserves.

Richard Benyon: Natural England has been investigating different management options for National Nature Reserves and Ministers have had a number of discussions with officials, Natural England and non-governmental organisations at which these have been covered.

Noise: National Policy Statements

Nicky Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Ilford North of 26 January 2011,  Official Report, column 522W, on local authorities: antisocial behaviour, what progress her Department has made in implementing the Noise Policy Statement for England.

Richard Benyon: The Government's policy on noise is set out in the Noise Policy Statement for England (NPSE) which was published in March 2010. It contains the high level vision of promoting good health and good quality of life (well being) through the effective management of noise. It is supported by three aims and together they provide the necessary clarity and direction to enable decisions to be made in any particular situation, both nationally and locally, regarding what is an acceptable noise burden to place on society.
	Implementation of the policy will increase the effectiveness and efficiency of the management of noise and will reduce the circumstances where noise has a significant adverse impact on health and well being.
	To implement this, officials have been working closely with other Government Departments to ensure the NPSE is reflected in relevant policies. For example, the consultation documents for the Public Health White Paper, "Proposals for a Public Health Outcomes Framework" and the Local Transport White Paper all contain references to the NPSE.
	Officials have also been working with other stakeholders to demonstrate how the NPSE can enable decisions to be made regarding what is an acceptable noise burden to place on society, at a local level.

Palm Oil Crops

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what discussions she has had with Wetlands International on the effect of the growth of palm oil crops on biodiversity.

Richard Benyon: DEFRA records show that the Department has not held any discussions with Wetlands International on the effect of the growth of palm oil crops on biodiversity.

Pets

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will estimate the number of dogs and cats available for sale  (a) through classified advertisements and  (b) via online sources in the latest period for which figures are available.

James Paice: We have no current plans to assess the number of dogs and cats available for sale through classified advertisements or via online sources. The independent Pet Advertising Advisory Group (PAAG), consisting of representatives from animal welfare organisations, media publishing companies, industry, DEFRA and the police, have provided sound advice for both advertisers of pets for sale (in the press and on the internet) and potential new owners. The group also facilitates enforcement action where appropriate. More information about PAAG can be found at:
	http://paag.org.uk/

Rabbits

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when her Department plans to publish a code of practice on the welfare of pet rabbits.

James Paice: We have no current plans to publish a code of practice on the welfare of pet rabbits. We consider that the requirements of the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to provide for the welfare needs of animals are sufficient to ensure the necessary protection for the welfare of pet rabbits.

Squirrels

Simon Hart: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many licences were issued by Natural England for the release of grey squirrels into the wild in each year since 2008.

Richard Benyon: The number of licences issued by Natural England for the release of grey squirrels into the wild in each year since 2008 is given in the following table.
	
		
			 Purpose 
			   Applications  Licences granted  Rehabilitation  Animal welfare  Scientific research 
			 2008 8 6 2 4 - 
			 2009 8 8 7 - 1 
			 2010 12 11 8 - 3

Waste Disposal: Devonport Dockyard

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if she will publish copies of written communications from her Department to the Ministry of Defence on the decision of the South West Waste Partnership  (a) to site a waste to energy plant in Devonport Naval Base and  (b) link the power so provided to Babcock Marine.

Richard Benyon: It is not normal practice to publish written communications between Government Departments (either on our website, or through other general media channels), although these are often released to the public as part of a request under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, or the Environmental Information Regulations 2004.
	In the interest of open Government, if the hon. Member informs me of any specific questions she has about the project, I will endeavour to answer them.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Sri Lanka: Internally Displaced People

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the development implications of the displacement of people in northern and eastern Sri Lanka following the creation of High Security Zones.

Alan Duncan: We are aware of the creation of high security zones in some parts of northern and eastern Sri Lanka which had originally been occupied by people displaced by conflict. It is important that effective arrangements are made to provide fair, adequate and timely compensation to displaced people who are unable to return to their original home and land.

Sri Lanka: Internally Displaced People

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of humanitarian conditions for internally displaced people in government-controlled camps in Sri Lanka.

Alan Duncan: Department for International Development (DFID) officials visited the camps for internally displaced people (IDPs) in Sri Lanka in November 2010. Since the end of the conflict in May 2009, the situation of IDPs has improved significantly. The number of people in the camps has reduced from about 300,000 to about 18,000. It is expected that most of those remaining will leave the camps during this year and return to their home.

Sudan: Overseas Aid

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what humanitarian assistance his Department is providing to northern Sudan.

Andrew Mitchell: There are serious humanitarian challenges in northern Sudan, particularly in the Darfur region, the three Eastern States (Red Sea, Kassala, and Gedaref) and in the Three Areas (Blue Nile, Southern Kordofan, and Abyei). The UK's biggest contribution to humanitarian assistance in Sudan is through the UN-managed Common Humanitarian Fund. In 2009 (which is the last year for which we have confirmed results), the UK's assistance to the Common Humanitarian Fund provided emergency shelter and essential household items for two million people, sustained a water supply to 725,000 people, delivered antenatal care for 100,000 pregnant women in Darfur, and rehabilitated eight primary health care centres serving more than 500,000 people. The UK delivers further humanitarian assistance in northern Sudan through our partnerships with NGOs such as MedAir International. For example, in the last six months of 2010, MedAir delivered 4,291 Safe Delivery Packs for pregnant women in West Darfur and Southern Kordofan.

United Nations

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment he has made of the steps taken by the UN to improve its response to natural disasters; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Mitchell: The UK Government remain committed to supporting the further strengthening of the international humanitarian system. The Department for International Development (DFID) has commissioned two major reviews which will help establish the UK's future approach when responding to natural disasters. The Multilateral Aid Review (MAR) is assessing value for money of UK contributions to multilateral organisations, including UN agencies and others covering humanitarian and disaster risk reduction issues, while the Humanitarian Emergency Response Review (HERR), an independent review assessing the UK's own humanitarian emergency response capability, will offer some reflections on our partnership with UN agencies during emergency responses. The conclusions of the MAR will be announced in the coming weeks and those of the HERR by the end of March.
	DFID has also supported the development and implementation of the Central Humanitarian Response Fund (CERF) five-year evaluation and the second evaluation of country level Common Humanitarian Funds (CHF) in Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and Central African Republic.

World Bank

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking with his international counterparts to reform the World Bank; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Mitchell: Our close cooperation with international counterparts secured an International Development Association (IDA) replenishment that led to a number of commitments by the World Bank to reform its effectiveness. These include a stronger focus on results, improvements to the way in which the bank assists fragile and conflict-affected states, improving its approach to the needs of girls and women, and the establishment of a crisis response facility to help poor countries facing shocks.
	The Multilateral Aid Review (MAR) that is being carried out by my Department is assessing the effectiveness and value for money provided by multilateral organisations including the World Bank. It is identifying additional areas for reforms. We have worked closely with our international counterparts on this, and will continue to do so in supporting the bank to make further progress in these areas. I will announce the results of the MAR in the coming weeks.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Crimes of Violence: Females

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many women who were the victims of  (a) wounding and  (b) grievous bodily harm had been previously stalked or harassed by the perpetrator in each year since 1998.

James Brokenshire: The information requested is not available centrally as police recorded crime data does not contain this level of detail.
	The Government are committed to tackling all forms of violence against women and girls, including stalking, and published their vision and guiding principles in this area on 25 November 2010. A detailed range of supporting actions, including those on tackling stalking, will be published in the spring.

Drugs: Crime

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the  (a) cost and  (b) outcomes for levels of drug crime in South Wales were of Operation Tarian.

James Brokenshire: Tarian's costs in 2009-10 totalled £5.3 million, £1.8 million of which was funded through direct grant from the Home Office.
	Tarian has been responsible for a number of notable successes in recent years and for tackling increasing levels of criminality that exceed the capability and capacity of forces acting alone, making a substantial impact on the flow of drugs into South Wales and the finances of the organised crime groups operating within this area. Through its work there has been a substantial increase in understanding of the threat to South Wales from serious and organised crime. Tarian has reported that between 2005-06 and 2008-09, its Regional Task Force carried out over 100 operations/seizures, disrupted or dismantled over 70 organised crime groups and seized over 20 kg of heroin/cocaine. In 2010, Operation "Texas" tackled an organised crime group operating in South Wales, resulting in 11 defendants charged and 17.5 kg of heroin seized-the largest ever seizure of its kind in Welsh policing history.
	Since the addition to Tarian of a Regional Asset Recovery Team, the value of confiscation and cash forfeiture orders made to date is in excess of £22.5 million, of which £13.4 million has been collected.

Police: Finance

Yvette Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much was allocated to police forces by central Government in each year since 2005-06.

Theresa May: holding answer 1 February 2011
	The information requested is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  England and Wales 
			  £ billion 
			  Financial year  Revenue funding and specific grants  Capital grant funding  Total grant funding 
			 2005-06 8.1 0.2 8.3 
			 2006-07 8.6 0.2 8.8 
			 2007-08 9.0 0.2 9.2 
			 2008-09 9.3 0.2 9.5 
			 2009-10 9.5 0.2 (1)9.8 
			 2010-11 9.7 0.2 (1)10.0 
			 (1) Totals are calculated with un-round numbers. In some cases they are not the sum of the rounded components.  Note: From 2006-07 funding for pensions and security funding became specific grants, and no longer part of general grant. 
		
	
	Figures comprise the Home Office police grant and certain specific grants and capital provision, and also the revenue support grant and national non-domestic rates (both provided by the Department for Communities and Local Government).

UK Border Agency: Peterborough City Council

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what services were provided to Peterborough City Council by the UK Border Agency at a cost of £27,000 as published on the Council's website on 10 February 2011; and if she will make a statement.

Damian Green: The UK Border Agency funds local authorities for caring for unaccompanied asylum seeking children (UASC) or, in certain circumstances, the same children once they reach 18 years of age. The payment referred to on the Peterborough city council website of £27,983 to the UK Border Agency relates to a repayment of UASC grant money following the end of year reconciliation for 2009-10. The payment was made on 11 January 2010.

CABINET OFFICE

Average Earnings

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the average gap between the earnings per hour of a full-time  (a) female and  (b) male worker was in (i) 1980, (ii) 1990, (iii) 2000 and (iv) 2010.

Nick Hurd: holding answer 14 February 2011
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what the average gap between the earnings per hour of a full-time (a) female and (b) male worker was in (i) 1980, (ii) 1990, (iii) 2000 and (iv) 2010. (40800).
	Average levels of earnings are estimated from the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), and prior to 1997 from the New Earnings Survey (NES). They are carried out in April each year and are the most comprehensive source of earnings information. The coverage of the survey was extended in ASHE from Great Britain to United Kingdom.
	ONS's headline estimates of gender pay differences are based on median hourly earnings excluding overtime, but this measure is not available prior to 1997. Prior to 1997, estimates are only available for mean hourly earnings (excluding overtime) of full-time employees in Great Britain. Therefore, in order to achieve continuity of the earnings estimates used over the time period requested, mean hourly earnings (excluding overtime) in Great Britain has been used to answer this question.
	I therefore attach a table showing the gender pay gap in (i) 1980, (ii) 1990, (iii) 2000 and (iv) 2010 for mean hourly earnings excluding overtime for all full-time male and female employees on adult rates of pay, whose pay for the survey period was not affected by absence, in Great Britain.
	
		
			  Mean hourly pay excluding overtime earnings-gender pay gap for full-time employee jobs( 1) : April 1980,1990, 2000 and 2010 in Great Britain 
			   All full-time male (£)  All full-time female (£)  Gender pay  gap  (percentage) 
			 1980 2.88 2.06 28.5 
			 1990 6.89 5.27 23.5 
			 2000 11.58 9.22 20.4 
			 2010 16.34 13.77 15.7 
			 (1) Employees on adult rates whose pay for the survey pay-period was not affected by absence.  Source: 1980 and 1990, New Earnings Survey (NES), Office for National Statistics. 2000 and 2001, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE), Office for National Statistics.

Businesses: Bexley

David Evennett: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many new business start-ups there were in Bexley in each of the last three years.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking how many new business start-ups there were in Bexley in each of the last three years.
	Annual statistics on the number of enterprise births are available from 2002 onwards in the ONS release on Business Demography at:
	www.statistics.gov.uk
	The table below contains the latest statistics, which show the number of enterprise births in Bexley for 2007, 2008 and 2009.
	
		
			  Enterprise births in Bexley , 2007-09 
			   Number 
			 2007 870 
			 2008 795 
			 2009 720

Infant Mortality

John Mann: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the  (a) neonatal,  (b) infant and  (c) child mortality rates (i) at Doncaster hospital, (ii) at Bassetlaw hospital, (iii) in the Yorkshire strategic health authority area, (iv) at Huddersfield hospital and (v) nationally were in each of the last five years.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	.
	Table 1 attached provides the (a) neonatal, (b) infant and (c) child mortality rates for the Yorkshire and Humber Strategic Health Authority and for England and Wales. Figures are for 2004-09, the most recent period for which figures are available.
	Due to the sensitive nature of infant deaths and the risk of identifying individuals, ONS does not publish infant or child mortality figures by individual hospitals or groups of hospitals. Further it is not possible for ONS to calculate mortality rates for patients within individual hospitals or groups of hospitals, as there are no readily available data for the denominator populations.
	Further information on infant and child mortality statistics is published on the Office for National Statistics website:
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=15309
	and
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=15362
	
		
			  Table 1: Neonatal, infant and child mortality rates for Yorkshire and the Humber strategic health authority and for England and Wales, 2005-2009( 1) 
			   2004  2005  2006  2007  2008  2009( 1) 
			  (a) neonatal mortality rates per 1,000 live births( 2)   
			 England and Wales 3.5 3.4 3.5 3.3 3.2 3.1 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber SHA 3.8 4.0 3.9 3.9 3.4 3.4 
			
			  (b) infant mortality rates per 1,000 live births( 3)   
			 England and Wales 5.0 5.0 5.0 4.7 4.6 4.5 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber SHA 5.8 6.0 5.7 5.6 5.4 5.1 
			
			  (c) child mortality rates per 100,000 population of the same age( 4)   
			 England and Wales 14 14 14 14 12 n/a 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber SHA 15 17 15 16 14 n/a 
			 n/a = Not available. (1) Rates for 2009 are provisional. (2) Rates per 1,000 live births for deaths at age under 28 days. (3) Rates per 1,000 live births for deaths under one year. (4) Rates per 100,000 population for ages 1 to 14 years based on mid-year population estimates.

Life Expectancy: Females

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proportion of women currently aged 56 are forecast to live to the age of  (a) 65,  (b) 70,  (c) 80 and  (d) 100.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what proportion of women aged 56 are forecast to live to the age of (a) 65, (b) 70, (c) 80 and (d) 100 (41450).
	The Office for National Statistics publishes life tables for the United Kingdom and its constituent countries.
	The table below gives the projected proportion for women aged 56 in 2010, resident in the United Kingdom, who will survive to ages 65, 70, 80 and 100 taking into account assumed future improvements in mortality.
	
		
			  Age  Year attains age  Percentage 
			 65 2019 95 
			 70 2024 92 
			 80 2034 78 
			 100 2054 13

Older Workers

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the labour market participation rate is for  (a) women and  (b) men aged (i) between 50 and 55 and (ii) between 56 and 60 years.

Nick Hurd: holding answer 11 February 2011
	The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what the labour market participation rate is for (a) women and (b) men aged (i) between 50 and 55 and (ii) between 56 and 60 years. 40177
	The labour market participation rate is measured using the Labour Force Survey and is the proportion of people who are economically active. The information requested is shown in the attached table. In accordance with the International Labour Organization (ILO) definition, people are classed as economically active if they are either in employment or unemployed.
	
		
			  Economic activity rate, by age group and sex, three months ending September 2010, United Kingdom, not seasonally adjusted 
			  Percentage 
			   Male  Female 
			   Aged 50-55  Aged 56-60  Aged 50-55  Aged 56-60 
			 Percentage of population that is economically active 87.2 76.6 78.2 63.1 
			  Source: Labour Force Survey.

Personal Income

Michael Meacher: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what estimate he has made of the level of household personal disposable income  (a) at current prices and  (b) in real terms in each year since 1981; and what the percentage change was in those figures in each such year.

Nick Hurd: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated February 2011:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question asking what estimate he has made of the level of household personal disposable income (a) at current prices and (b) in real terms in each year since 1981; and what has been the percentage change in those figures in each such year. (39952)
	Data is not available for all years since 1981. Available data is given in the tables below, with percentage changes given where we have two contiguous years of data. Estimates of median equivalised household disposable incomes are available in the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series. This uses disposable household income, adjusted using modified OECD equivalisation factors for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living. This data is at a household level.
	Estimates of median equivalised household disposable incomes are available in the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) series, with figures for median household equivalised income in real 2008/09 prices from 1994/95 to 2008/09 published in Table 2. Its of the HBAI publication available at
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/hbai/hbai_2009/index.php?page=contents
	
		
			  Table 1: Values of median weekly equivalised disposable household income, Before Housing Costs, 1981 to 2008/09, in current prices of the year in question and 2008/09 real terms prices 
			Median income (cash terms) (£)  Percentage change since previous year (cash terms) (%)  Median income (real terms) (£)  Percentage change since previous year (real terms) (%) 
			 1981 UK 84 - 253 - 
			 1987 UK 137 - 291 - 
			 1988/89 UK 163 - 312 - 
			 1990-91 UK 194 - 319 - 
			 1991-92 UK 206 - 321 - 
			 1992-93 UK 209 - 322 - 
			 1993/94 to 1994/95 UK 226 - 327 - 
			 1994/95 GB 232 - 322 - 
			 1995/96 GB 239 3 322 0 
			 1996/97 GB 258 8 336 4 
			 1997/98 GB 266 3 342 2 
			 1998/99 GB 274 3 348 2 
			 1999/2000 GB 290 6 358 3 
			 2000/01 GB 297 3 369 3 
			 2001/02 GB 316 6 388 5 
			 2002/03 UK 328 4 395 2 
			 2003/04 UK 336 2 395 0 
			 2004/05 UK 350 4 398 1 
			 2005/06 UK 362 4 402 1 
			 2006/07 UK 377 4 404 0 
			 2007/08 UK 393 4 404 0 
			 2008/09 UK 407 4 407 1 
			  Source: Households Below Average Income, DWP 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Values of median weekly equivalised disposable household income, After Housing Costs, 1981 to 2008/09, in current prices of the year in question and 2008/09 real terms prices 
			Median income (cash terms) (£)  Percentage change since previous year (cash terms) (%)  Median income (real terms) (£)  Percentage change since previous year (real terms) (%) 
			 1981 UK 76 - 200 - 
			 1987 UK 119 - 228 - 
			 1988/89 UK 140 - 248 - 
			 1990-91 UK 161 - 253 - 
			 1991-92 UK 174 - 255 - 
			 1992-93 UK 179 - 256 - 
			 1993/94 to 1994/95 UK 194 - 261 - 
			 1994/95 GB 196 - 254 - 
			 1995/96 GB 203 3 255 0 
			 1996/97 GB 217 7 268 5 
			 1997/98 GB 225 4 273 2 
			 1998/99 GB 232 3 279 2 
			 1999/2000 GB 245 6 291 4 
			 2000/01 GB 254 4 302 4 
			 2001/02 GB 273 7 319 6 
			 2002/03 UK 286 5 330 3 
			 2003/04 UK 293 2 333 1 
			 2004/05 UK 300 3 337 1 
			 2005/06 UK 310 3 342 1 
			 2006/07 UK 321 4 344 1 
			 2007/08 UK 332 3 346 1 
			 2008/09 UK 343 3 343 -1 
			  Notes: 1. These statistics are based on Households Below Average Income. 2. The reference period for Households Below Average Income figures are single financial years. 3. Data from 1994/95 is sourced from the Family Resources Survey, with earlier data sourced from the Family Expenditure Survey. 4. FES figures are for the United Kingdom, FRS figures are for Great Britain up to 2001/02, and for the United Kingdom from 2002/03. The reference period for FRS figures is single financial years. FES figures are two combined calendar years from 1990/91-1992/93 and two financial years combined for 1993/95.  5. Small changes should be treated with caution as these will be affected by sampling error and variability in non-response. 6. The income measures used to derive the estimates shown employ the same methodology as the Department for Work and Pensions publication 'Households Below Average Income' series, which uses disposable household income, adjusted (or 'equivalised') for household size and composition, as an income measure as a proxy for standard of living, equivalised using Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development equivalisation factors. 7. Median incomes have been provided rather than mean incomes because the income distribution is skewed with some outliers with high incomes. 8. Weekly incomes have been rounded to the nearest pound sterling, while percentage changes have been rounded to the nearest percentage point. 9. Figures have been presented on a Before Housing Cost and an After Housing Cost basis. For Before Housing Costs, housing costs (such as rent, water rates, mortgage interest payments, structural insurance payments and ground rent and service charges) are not deducted from income, while for After Housing Costs they are.  Source: Households Below Average Income, DWP

Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme

Angela Eagle: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what proportion of active members of the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme earn  (a) between £10,000 and £15,000,  (b) between £15,000 and £20,000,  (c) between £20,000 and £25,000,  (d) between £25,000 and £30,000 and  (e) £30,000 and more.

Francis Maude: As at 31 March 2010 the proportion of active members of the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme earning  (a) between £10,000 and £15,000,  (b) between £15,000 and £20,000,  (c) between £20,000 and £25,000,  (d) between £25,000 and £30,000 and  (e) £30,000 and more are as follows:
	
		
			  Earnings range  Active membership (%) 
			 £10,000-£15,000 4 
			 £15,000-£20,000 30 
			 £20,000-£25,000 22 
			 £25,000-£30,000 18 
			 Over £30,000 26

PRIME MINISTER

Business: Community Development

Chris Ruane: To ask the Prime Minister which companies have informed him of their intention to participate in the Every Business Commits initiative.

Edward Davey: I have been asked to reply.
	Our immediate priority has been to set about removing obstacles to businesses delivering on the commitments set out in the Every Business Commits initiative. Alongside this work, we are proactively working directly with businesses, and umbrella organisations such as Business in the Community, to identify specific actions businesses can take. For example, Sainsbury's is committed to paying for a number of senior managers to work full-time within their communities as business connectors, helping businesses and the voluntary sector work closer together, and bringing the knowledge, skills and expertise of the business community to good use locally. Fujitsu have committed to developing and running a new IT platform to support business connectors and link businesses to their local communities.

Members: Correspondence

Ivan Lewis: To ask the Prime Minister 
	(1)  when he plans to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Bury South, dated 24 January 2011;
	(2)  when he plans to answer question 38789, on correspondence with the hon. Member for Bury South, tabled on 2 February 2011 for named day answer on 7 February.

David Cameron: A reply has been sent.

TREASURY

Banks: Pay

Angela Eagle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  if he will publish a list of each attendee at each meeting which has taken place as part of Project Merlin;
	(2)  how many meetings relating to Project Merlin have involved small businesses in  (a) the South West,  (b) the South East,  (c) the West Midlands and  (d) London.

David Hanson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many meetings relating to Project Merlin have involved small businesses in  (a) the East Midlands,  (b) the North West,  (c) the North East,  (d) Wales and  (e) Scotland.

Mark Hoban: holding answer 9 February 2011
	Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. It is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

Banks: Pay

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what  (a) (i) discussions and (ii) meetings his Department had with and  (b) representations he received from the Scottish Government on Project Merlin prior to 9 February 2011.

Mark Hoban: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. It is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

Child Care Tax Credit

Karen Buck: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the effects on work incentives of reductions in entitlement to the child care element of working tax credit.

David Gauke: The estimates of the impact of the reduction in entitlement to the child care element presented in the 'Spending Review 2010 policy costings' document consider only the first-order effects of the policy.
	The Office for Budget Responsibility's "Economic and Fiscal Outlook" considered the wider indirect effects of welfare reforms made in the spending review. Full details are available at:
	http://budgetresponsibility.independent.gov.uk/d/econ_fiscal_outlook_291110.pdf

Departmental Conferences

Robert Halfon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what steps he has taken since his appointment to reduce expenditure on conferences from budgets within his responsibility;
	(2)  what his Department's annual budget for conferences was at  (a) 7 May 2010 and  (b) 7 December 2010.

Justine Greening: Conference spending, along with all other spending by the Department, is subject to rigorous scrutiny and regular review to ensure there is a necessary business need for the spending and that it represents good value for money.
	The Treasury does not have a specific budget for conferences, but conference costs are included within HM Treasury's wider hospitality, catering and conferences budget. At 7 May 2010 this budget was £705,000 and at 7 December 2010 was £655,000. The full year forecast is now £477,000.

Disability Living Allowance: Care Homes

Anne Begg: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to spending review 2010, page 69, what estimate his Department has made of the amount of public funds spent on meeting the mobility needs of those in receipt of disability living allowance who live in residential care excluding funding spent by the Department for Work and Pensions; and what the evidential basis is for this estimate.

Justine Greening: Mobility provision for people in residential care homes will be reviewed as part of wider reform of DLA.
	The review of mobility provision will allow us to put in place proper support for care home residents that takes full account of their individual needs and puts clear duties in place to safeguard the most vulnerable.

Financial Services: Consumer Protection

Lorely Burt: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what contribution he plans to make on consumer protection in financial services to the Financial Stability Board prior to the G20 Summit in November 2011.

Mark Hoban: The Financial Stability Board (FSB) is currently developing its consultation. The UK is seeking to take a full role in the consultation process to inform the FSB's thinking and is currently in discussions with the FSB to determine how we can most effectively contribute.

Financial Services: Pay

Angela Eagle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what date he next expects to discuss with his European counterparts an agreement on transparency for executive pay in the financial services sector.

Mark Hoban: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. It is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

Financial Services: Pay

Edward Balls: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he plans to take to secure agreement with other European countries on transparency of executive pay in the financial services sector.

Mark Hoban: holding answer 10 February 2011
	Remuneration disclosure has been discussed as part of the Government's dialogue with other jurisdictions and we continue to consider proposals to strengthen remuneration disclosure, including of executive pay in the financial services sector.
	The Chancellor has called on counterparts in the European Union to consider urgently proposals to strengthen remuneration disclosure. While there is a range of views among the international community, there is consensus and support for an internationally consistent approach to remuneration disclosure.

Financial Services: Pay

Edward Balls: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many of his Department's meetings on Project Merlin have involved small businesses in Northern Ireland.

Mark Hoban: holding answer 10 February 2011
	Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery. It is not the Government's practice to provide details of all such meetings.

Income Tax: Northern Ireland

Lady Hermon: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many residents of Northern Ireland there were in each income tax band in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.

David Gauke: The requested information can be found on the HMRC website on page 3 of table 2-2 at the following address:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/income_tax/table2-2.pdf

Members: Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he plans to respond to the letter from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton of 9 December 2010 in regard to Ms G Brownridge.

Justine Greening: I have replied to the right hon. Member.

Members: Correspondence

David Winnick: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  when he expects to respond to the letter from the hon. Member for Walsall North of 11 January 2011 sent to the Department of Energy and Climate Change, reference 7/22583/2011 and transferred to his Department, regarding a constituent;
	(2)  whether the hon. Member for Walsall North will receive a reply to his letter of 9 February 2011 concerning a constituent and dealing with domestic energy prices despite the circulation of a standard letter to hon. Members on fuel prices from the Economic Secretary to the Treasury.

Justine Greening: I wrote to all hon. Members on 9 February to set out the Government's overall position on fuel duty. I will reply separately to the hon. Member's correspondence concerning domestic energy prices.

National Insurance Contributions

Matthew Hancock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  if he will estimate the number of employees for whom employers pay no national insurance contributions in each  (a) local authority,  (b) parliamentary constituency and  (c) region; and what estimate he has made of the effect on this number of the proposal to raise national insurance threshold for employers by £21 a week above indexation from April 2011;
	(2)  if he will estimate the number of businesses in each  (a) local authority,  (b) parliamentary constituency and  (c) region which will be affected by the change in national insurance threshold for employers in April 2011;
	(3)  if he will estimate the effect on an average business in each  (a) local authority,  (b) Parliamentary constituency and (c) region of the change in national insurance threshold for employers in April 2011.

David Gauke: Estimates of the total number of employees earning below the secondary threshold for national insurance contributions in 2011-12 are not available through HMRC administrative data sources.
	It is estimated that the number of employees for whom employers pay national insurance will decrease by 650,000 due to the increase in the secondary threshold by £21 above indexation in April 2011. Estimates for local authorities, parliamentary constituencies and regions are not available.
	The estimate above is based on Annual Survey of Hours and earnings data for employees, projected using economic assumptions consistent with the Office for Budget Responsibility's autumn 2010 forecast.
	Detailed estimates of numbers of businesses benefitting and average impacts per business are not available. However, all employers paying employer contributions gain up to £150 per employee as a result of the increase in the secondary threshold. Statistics published by Business Innovation and Skills show there are around 1.8 million businesses with employees in 2009, the majority of which are likely to benefit.

Revenue and Customs: ICT

Mike Freer: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the capacity of commercial software suppliers to provide the necessary software for businesses to comply with the April 2011 implementation deadline set by HM Revenue and Customs for iXBRL filing.

David Gauke: Over 30 commercial suppliers whose iXBRL enabled software products have been successfully tested with HMRC are listed on HMRC's website. All have provided evidence that their software can produce documents compliant with the iXBRL requirements being brought in from 1 April 2011.

Revenue and Customs: ICT

Mike Freer: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of  (a) the likely effect on business costs of the implementation of iXBRL filing,  (b) the likely effect of penalties imposed by HM Revenue and Customs on small businesses unable to comply with the iXBRL filing deadline and  (c) the effect on receipts to the Exchequer of extending the iXBRL filing deadline beyond April 2011.

David Gauke: HMRC published a regulatory impact assessment (RIA) in 2007. This provided an estimate of the one off costs for businesses from the increase of online filing generally. Now that a range of iXBRL-enabled software is available, HMRC will update this RIA.
	There are no new penalties associated with the introduction of iXBRL. As currently, people may be penalised if they file returns late. But HMRC has confirmed that if a deadline is missed because of implementation issues with iXBRL software their well-established reasonable excuse provisions will apply. HMRC's guidance on transitional arrangements can be found at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/ct/mandatory-online-filing.pdf
	April 2011 is not a filing deadline. It is the implementation date for mandatory filing of Company Tax Returns using iXBRL. No assessment has been made of the effect on receipts of changing this date.

Royal Bank of Scotland: Santander

Christopher Leslie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the likely effects on competition of the sale of Royal Bank of Scotland branches to Santander.

Mark Hoban: holding answer 11 February 2011
	The Royal Bank of Scotland is required to execute the sale of a retail banking business with a 5% market share in the small and medium enterprise (SME) market as a condition of EU state aid approval for the aid they have received. The terms of this approval committed that the buyer of the divestment must, in combination with the divestment business, have a SME market share of no more than 14% in the UK. This condition on the maximum size of potential purchasers was set based on evidence from the UK competition authorities as to the size of banks that behave as challengers to the large incumbent banks. Santander UK currently have a small SME market share in the UK and in combination with the RBS divestment will have less than a 14% share of that market. As such, the sale will serve to increase competition in the UK banking sector as a whole, and especially in the SME market.

Taxation

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will review the exemptions for woodland owners from  (a) capital gains tax,  (b) inheritance tax and  (c) income tax.

David Gauke: I refer the hon. Lady to the answer I gave on 24 January 2011,  Official Report, column 125W.

Taxation: Aviation

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what assessment has been made of the effects on the level of aviation taxation in the UK and  (a) economic activity,  (b) trade,  (c) tourism and  (d) growth; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the effects of the level of aviation taxation and the UK's ability to increase its trade with  (a) China and  (b) India;
	(3)  what assessment he has made of the effects of the level of aviation taxation and the UK's ability to attract more tourists from  (a) China and  (b) India.

Justine Greening: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given to the hon. Member for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich (Dr Poulter) on 22 November 2010,  Official Report, column 83W.

UK Financial Investments

Christopher Leslie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the merits of introducing a public interest test in respect of disposal of assets of companies in which UK Financial Investments Ltd holds a stake.

Mark Hoban: holding answer 11 February 2011
	UK Financial Investment's (UKFI) mandate is to develop and execute a strategy for disposing of the Government's investments in financial institutions in an orderly and active way, within the context of protecting and creating value for the taxpayer as shareholder and paying due regard to the maintenance of financial stability and to acting in a way that promotes competition. UKFI is responsible for recommending sales to the Chancellor in line with its Framework Agreement and Investment Mandate.
	UKFI's mandate was constructed to reflect the key factors that will drive the Government's decisions with respect to disposals of the publicly-owned banks. Good outcomes for the Exchequer, financial stability and competition are all clearly in the public interest.

VAT: Supermarkets

Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he plans to extend the application of the basic rate of value added tax to hot food sold from delicatessen counters in supermarkets; and if he will make a statement.

David Gauke: The rules concerning hot take-away food are the same for all businesses.
	VAT is payable on a supply of hot food that has been heated for the purposes of enabling it to be consumed at a temperature above the ambient air temperature and it is above that temperature at the time it is provided to the customer. The Chancellor keeps all taxes under review and announces any changes as part of the budget process.

Welfare Tax Credits: Repayments

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will fund proposals to allow tax credit claimants who have received erroneous payments due to administrative error to have payments backdated by more than three months; and if he will make a statement.

David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) code of practice 26 (COP-26) "What happens if we've paid you too much tax credit?" outlines the Department's approach to overpayments. The COP 26 is available on the HMRC website together with customer guidance about backdating tax credits entitlement at:
	www.hmrc.gov.uk/taxcredits/index.htm
	Regulation 7 of the Tax Credits (Claims and Notifications) Regulations 2002 provides for tax credits entitlement to be backdated up to a maximum of 93 days. Regulation 8 outlines the circumstances in which entitlement can be backdated for longer than 93 days for working tax credit claims including the disability element.
	Regulation 3 of the Tax Credits (Official Error) Regulations 2003 provides for the revision of incorrect decisions, and gives a time limit of five years after the end of the tax year to which the decision relates, where a decision was a result of an Official Error.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Access to Work Programme: Sign Language

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many applications were  (a) made and  (b) approved under the Access to Work scheme for sign language interpreting services (i) in 2009-2010 and (ii) between January and November 2010.

Maria Miller: The information requested is not routinely collected and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	Cumulative data about the numbers and types of people who are helped by Access to Work is published quarterly on the DWP website. The latest data, published in December 2010, covered the period from April to September 2010.
	Of the 37,210 people who were helped by Access to Work between April 2009 and March 2010, 5,450 said that their primary need for support was because of a difficulty hearing.
	Of the 29,040 people that Access to Work helped between April and September 2010, 4,580 said that their primary need for support was because of a difficulty hearing.

Children: Maintenance

Charles Kennedy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he expects the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission to conduct its review of procedures and rules relating to share care cases; and what consideration will be given to cases in which the disparity in income between the non-resident parent and the parent who is caring for the child is substantial.

Maria Miller: The Government have recently published a consultation document "Strengthening families, promoting parental responsibility: the future of child maintenance" available at:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/strengthening-families.pdf
	The Government want to encourage parents to reach family-based arrangements for child maintenance which will facilitate co-parenting and ongoing involvement of both parents in their children's lives. If parents can come to an agreement about shared care we would hope that they could also make a family-based arrangement suitable to both parties.
	The Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission (the Commission) is currently reviewing shared care as it makes plans to move to the new child maintenance system in 2012. The new child maintenance system seeks to deliver calculations which are simpler, quicker and more transparent. In keeping with the objective of simpler calculations, liabilities will continue to be based on the relevant income of the non-resident parent.
	A disparity in income levels between the parent with care and non-resident parent does not alter parent's responsibility to support their child. This is a central principle of child support legislation and the majority of non-resident parents, including those on lower incomes or in receipt of benefits, are required to make some contribution to the support of their child.

Departmental Manpower

Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the most recent previous employment was of each senior staff member newly employed on a fixed-term contract in his Department since May 2010.

Chris Grayling: There have been no senior staff members newly employed on a fixed term contract in the Department since May 2010.

Departmental Official Cars

Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many ministerial cars his Department has used since May 2010.

Chris Grayling: The Government Car Service provides a safe and secure transport for Government Ministers and their official papers.
	As per the arrangement under the previous Administration, the DWP had five ministerial cars allocated to Ministers in May 2010.
	A review was launched and from 6 September, the number of vehicles was reduced to one allocated ministerial car for the Secretary of State. At the same time a ministerial car pool was introduced for other Ministers to use.
	This revised operating model has reduced expenditure by 54%.
	The Department is continuing to explore other options to provide this service and further reduce its cost.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much his Department has spent on travel for officials since May 2010.

Chris Grayling: The Department is currently reviewing all expenditure with a view to driving out inefficiencies and delivering value for money for the taxpayer.
	In line with the Government's austerity agenda, the Department for Work and Pensions has taken vigorous action to enhance business travel policy. Overall this is projected to produce savings in the region of 40%, measured against last year's expenditure. The DWP's business travel policy actively discourages travel, unless the alternatives have been examined and exhausted and where travel is deemed appropriate, encourages the use of the most cost-effective modes of transport.
	Measuring the expenditure since May 2010, against a comparable period last year illustrates that the expenditure on travel has fallen by '45%':
	
		
			  Period  (May to December each year)  Expenditure (£ million/percentage) 
			 2010 (£ million) 23.9 
			 2009 (£ million) 43.6 
			 Percentage reduction -45 
		
	
	The total expenditure set out above needs to be seen in the context of a Department with over 100,000 staff based in over 900 locations throughout Great Britain.
	The above expenditure also includes elements of the cost of provision of transport, to meet the Departments' obligations, under the Disability Discrimination Act.
	It should be noted that in order for the DWP to provide the full scope of services, in line with its key objectives, a certain degree of business travel is required, for example, trainers will travel to multiple sites; fraud investigation staff will conduct surveillance exercises; Jobcentre Plus staff carry out outreach activity outside of the Government estate, all in the course of their duties.

Disability Living Allowance

Jake Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many residents of Rossendale and Darwen constituency receiving disability living allowance (DLA) have had their DLA payments reassessed in the last 12 months; how many of these had their payments  (a) reduced,  (b) increased and  (c) revoked; how many appealed their reassessment; and how many were successful in their appeal.

Maria Miller: We are not able to say how many residents of Rossendale and Darwen constituency receiving disability living allowance (DLA) have had their DLA payments reassessed in the last 12 months; how many of these had their payments  (a) reduced,  (b) increased and  (c) revoked; how many appealed their reassessment; and how many were successful in their appeal. This is because our management information system for DLA does not enable us to provide details at that level.

Disability Living Allowance

John Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the proportion of the mobility element of disability living allowance that is spent by recipients on  (a) critical and  (b) social needs.

Maria Miller: DLA provides a cash contribution towards the extra costs arising from disability and uses mobility and care needs as proxies for those extra costs. The benefit is unconditional and recipients are free to use it according to their own priorities.
	A recent report conducted by the university of York for the Department "The impact of Disability Living Allowance and Attendance Allowance: Findings from exploratory qualitative research"-Research Report No. 649-available at:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd5/rports2009-2010/rrep649.pdf
	suggests that disability living allowance recipients spend the benefit on a wide range of mobility support to meet their needs. This includes: transport, such as taxis; purchasing particular types of mobility aids; electric scooters; customised wheelchairs; paying for adaptations around the home to prevent falls; and accessing vehicles through the Motability scheme.

Disability Living Allowance: AIDS

Stephen Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his policy is on the length of time for which persons diagnosed with AIDS prior to 1999 will be eligible for disability living allowance.

Maria Miller: No time limit is made for the receipt of disability living allowance with regard to any particular diagnosis. Awards of disability living allowance, whether made for an indefinite period or a fixed period, are made on the basis that the conditions of entitlement upon which that award was made are met, and continue to be met.

Health and Safety Executive

Graham Brady: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he expects the Health and Safety Executive to bring forward proposals for the next steps in its development as a more commercial entity competing where relevant in an open market.

Chris Grayling: The Minister for Employment has asked the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to develop and progressively implement ways of reducing the funding that the Government provides over the course of the next four financial years. A wide range of potential options will be examined and until the work is further advanced it is not possible set a firm timetable.

Housing Benefit

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what definition he uses for under-occupancy of social rented accommodation for the purposes of restricting housing benefit.

Steve Webb: The detail of this measure is still being considered but we anticipate that we shall use the same size criteria as currently used for assessing housing benefit in the private sector under the local housing allowance. That is, one bedroom for each of the following:
	a couple
	a person who is not a child (age 16 and over)
	two children of the same sex
	two children who are under 10
	any other child.

Housing Benefit

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he plans to publish the two-year review of the local housing allowance.

Steve Webb: The Two Year Review of the Local Housing Allowance was published on Thursday 10 February 2011. The report can be found at the following link:
	http://www.dwp.gov.uk/local%2Dauthority%2Dstaff/housing%2Dbenefit/claims%2Dprocessing/local% 2Dhousing%2Dallowance/evaluation/

Housing Benefit

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the liability of local authorities for penalties for early termination of contracts for outsourced housing benefit administration when housing support is centralised following implementation of his proposals for universal credit.

Steve Webb: The Department for Work and Pensions will be responsible for organising the delivery of Universal Credit. We have not yet finalised the detail and therefore the impact on organisations currently delivering benefits that universal credit will replace. We will work closely with local authorities to understand and manage the impacts so that we can transition customers smoothly to any new arrangements.

Housing Benefit: Pregnant Women

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions at what point single pregnant women become entitled to the single room rate of housing benefit rather than the shared room rate; and if he will make a statement.

Steve Webb: Pregnant single women under 25 are entitled to the shared accommodation rate until they give birth, at which point they become entitled to the two bedroom rate of local housing allowance. If a woman in these circumstances chooses to move into larger accommodation before the birth of her child she will need to meet the rent shortfall from other income or she could apply to her local authority to be considered for a discretionary housing payment.

Incapacity Benefit: Dartford

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Dartford constituency successfully claimed incapacity benefit due to heart disease in each of the last five years.

Maria Miller: The information requested is as follows:
	
		
			  Incapacity benefit and severe disablement allowance (IB/SDA) and employment and support allowance (ESA) claimants in Dartford constituency 
			  As at May each year  Total  Claiming on the basis of heart disease 
			  IB/SDA   
			 2006 2,970 90 
			 2007 2,960 80 
			 2008 3,020 90 
			 2009 2,720 70 
			 2010 2,340 60 
			
			  ESA   
			 2010 670 20 
			  Notes:  1. Data is rounded to nearest 10.  2. To qualify for incapacity benefit (IB), claimants have to undertake a medical assessment of incapacity for work called a personal capability assessment. Under the employment and support allowance regime, new claimants have to undergo the work capability assessment. From April 2011 incapacity benefit recipients will begin also to undertake this assessment. The medical condition recorded on the claim form does not itself confer entitlement to incapacity benefit or employment and support allowance. So, for example, a decision on entitlement for a customer claiming incapacity benefit on the basis of "heart disease" would be based on their ability to carry out the range of activities related to physical and mental function, assessed by the personal/work capability assessment. 3. Incapacity benefit was replaced by employment and support allowance (ESA) from October 2008.  4. Constituencies used for May 2010 are for the Westminster Parliament of 2010. Prior to this, the constituencies used are for May 2005.  5. Data by medical condition for ESA is only available from 2010.   Source:  DWP Information Directorate 100% WPLS.

Industrial Health and Safety

Margot James: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether the Health and Safety Executive has launched the simplified interactive risk assessment form for  (a) offices,  (b) classrooms and  (c) shops recommended in Lord Young's report, Common Sense, Common Safety.

Chris Grayling: The Health and Safety Executive launched a tool for low-risk office-based environments on 15 October 2010. A classroom tool was launched for consultation on 22 November 2010. In addition, tools for low risk shops and charity shops were launched for consultation on 15 and 23 December respectively.

Jobcentre Plus: Kilmarnock

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he next plans to visit the Jobcentre that serves Kilmarnock and Loudoun constituency; and if he will make a statement.

Chris Grayling: Since May 2010, the Department's ministerial team has visited numerous constituencies and Jobcentres across the UK.
	The Department's ministerial team currently have no plans to visit the Kilmarnock and Loudoun constituency, however, should any Ministers do so, they will look to visit the Jobcentre there.

Pensioners: Personal Savings

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the proportion of  (a) women and  (b) men aged 56 who have pension savings of (i) less than £2,000, (ii) less than £4,000 (iii) less than £6,000 and (iv) less than £8,000.

Steve Webb: The information requested is as follows:
	
		
			  (a) Proportion of women who have private pension wealth of (i) less than £2,000, (ii) less than £4,000, (iii) less than £6,000 and (iv) less than £8,000 aged 56 in 2006-08 
			  Amount of private pension wealth  Proportion of women aged 56 (%)( 1) 
			  Less than:  
			 £2,000 42 
			 £4,000 44 
			 £6,000 47 
			 £8,000 49 
		
	
	
		
			  (b) Proportion of men who have private pension wealth of (i) less than £2,000, (ii) less than £4,000, (iii) less than £6,000 and (iv) l ess than £8,000 aged 56 in 2006- 08 
			  Amount of private pension wealth  Proportion of men aged 56 (%)( 1) 
			  Less than:  
			 £2,000 25 
			 £4,000 27 
			 £6,000 28 
			 £8,000 30 
			 (1) Includes those with zero pension wealth.  Notes: 1. We interpreted the question to mean wealth held in private pensions. Private pensions are all pensions that are not state basic retirement or state earnings related. There are nine categories included in the estimates of private pension wealth: defined benefit (DB) pensions, defined contribution (DC) pensions and personal pensions to which the individual was contributing at the time of survey, additional voluntary contributions (AVCs) made to current pensions, retained rights in DB and DC schemes, pension funds from which the individual was drawing an income through income drawdown, pensions in payment and pensions expected in the future based on the contributions of a former spouse. The estimates quoted include those individuals with zero pension wealth. The private pension wealth figures provided here were not immediately available from the Wealth and Assets Survey report, and were obtained by carrying out in-house analysis of the data. 2. The Wealth and Assets Survey (WAS) is a large scale nationally representative longitudinal survey of over 30,000 private households in Great Britain that provides comprehensive information on people's assets and net wealth. The first wave was conducted from July 2006 to June 2008. It collected detailed information on financial and non-financial assets, and wealth components such as savings, pensions, property, mortgages and debt as well as people's attitudes and savings behaviour over time. 3. Extensive analysis of pension wealth using the Wealth and Assets data is available in "Wealth in Great Britain 2006-08" at the following web link: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_economy/wealth-assets-2006-2008/Wealth_in_GB_2006_2008.pdf  Source: Wealth and Assets Survey 2006-08

Pensioners: Personal Savings

Rachel Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of average monetary value of pension savings of  (a) men and  (b) women aged (i) 30, (ii) 40 and (iii) 50.

Steve Webb: The information requested is as follows:
	 (a) Estimates of pension wealth held by men aged (i) 30, (ii) 40 and (iii) 50 in private pensions in 2006/08 are as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			  Aged  Median( 1)  Mean( 1) 
			 30 0 20,538 
			 40 12,375 79,117 
			 50 54,752 158,496 
			 (1) Includes those with zero pension wealth.  Source: Wealth and Assets Survey 2006-08 
		
	
	 (b) Estimates of pension wealth held by women aged (i) 30, (ii) 40 and (iii) 50 in private pensions in 2006/08 are as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			  Aged  Median( 1)  Mean( 1) 
			 30 0 15,849 
			 40 5,287 44,577 
			 50 11,390 87,184 
			 (1) Includes those with zero pension wealth.  Notes: 1. We interpreted the question to mean wealth held in private pensions. Private pensions are all pensions that are not state basic retirement or state earnings related. There are nine categories included in the estimates of private pension wealth: defined benefit (DB) pensions, defined contribution (DC) pensions and personal pensions to which the individual was contributing at the time of survey, additional voluntary contributions (AVCs) made to current pensions, retained rights in DB and DC schemes, pension funds from which the individual was drawing an income through income drawdown, pensions in payment and pensions expected in the future based on the contributions of a former spouse. The estimates quoted include those individuals with zero pension wealth. The private pension wealth figures provided here were not immediately available from the Wealth and Assets Survey report, and were obtained by carrying out in house analysis of the data. 2. We provide figures for both mean and median private pension wealth. The median may provide a better measure compared to the mean since the distribution of private pension wealth can be skewed by a small number of very large amounts of wealth at the top of the distribution. 3. The Wealth and Assets Survey (WAS) is a large scale nationally representative longitudinal survey of over 30,000 private households in Great Britain that provides comprehensive information on people's assets and net wealth. The first wave was conducted from July 2006 to June 2008. It collected detailed information on financial and non-financial assets, and wealth components such as savings, pensions, property, mortgages and debt as well as people's attitudes and savings behaviour over time. 4. Extensive analysis of pension wealth using the Wealth and Assets data is available in 'Wealth in Great Britain 2006/08' at the following web link: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_economy/wealth-assets-2006-2008/Wealth_in_GB_2006_2008.pdf  Source: Wealth and Assets Survey 2006/08

Public Expenditure

Cathy Jamieson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much Barnett consequential funding his Department has provided to each of the devolved Administrations in  (a) 2010-11 to date and  (b) each of the last three years; and with which programmes such funding was associated.

Chris Grayling: In the 2010 spending review changes in the DEL budgets of the devolved Administrations were determined by the Barnett formula in the normal way. The settlements for the years 2011-12 to 2014-15 were published in table 2.22 of the 2010 spending review document (Cm 7942).
	Barnett consequentials relating to each of the devolved Administrations for the years 2008-09 to 2010-11 are published as part of the Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses Supplementary Material on the Treasury's website under the heading "House of Lords Select Committee on the Barnett Formula":
	http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/pespub_pesa10.htm
	Updated tables taking account of adjustments since the publication of the 2010 edition of PESA will be published alongside the next edition of PESA later this year.
	Information on the block grants paid by the territorial offices to the devolved Administrations is published alongside the Main and Supplementary Estimates.

Remploy

William Bain: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 13 December 2010,  Official Report, column 461W, to the hon. Member for Glasgow East, on Remploy, when he expects the independent review of the support the Government provided to disabled people who want to work to be completed.

Maria Miller: The call for evidence closes on 28 February and we expect the Sayce Review to be published in the summer 2011.

Remploy: Manpower

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the reasons for the change in the number of managers in Remploy since 2008.

Maria Miller: It is a matter for Remploy to decide on the appropriate level (and grade) of staffing for the company.
	The increase in managers in the Employment Services is due to expansion that has seen the number of disabled people supported into work increase from 6,500 in 2007-08 to 10,600 in 2009-2010.
	The change in the number of managers in the Enterprise Business is as a result of the introduction of the modernisation plan and restructuring of the business.

Remploy: Trade Unions

Tom Greatrex: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will take steps to ensure that the management of Remploy consult and negotiate on their plans for the future of the organisation with the recognised trade unions in line with the national agreement.

Maria Miller: Consultation on the voluntary redundancy scheme is a management matter for Remploy. Remploy have assured my officials that it is committed to honouring its legal obligations for the consultation process and I have encouraged the company and the trade unions to continue discussions to provide the best outcome for disabled people.

Social Security Benefits

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how employment will be defined for the purposes of determining which household will be subject to the proposed total cap on benefit entitlement for workless households.

Steve Webb: We are introducing the benefit cap to promote fairness between those in and out of work and to increase incentives for people to move into work or increase their hours of employment. In support of these objectives, households which contain a member who is in receipt of working tax credit will be exempt from the cap. We are still considering the precise criteria for an equivalent exemption under universal credit.

Social Security Benefits

Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of households which will be subject to the cap on benefit entitlement where social rents are set at 80% of market rents.

Steve Webb: Work between DWP and the Department for Communities and Local Government is ongoing on the impact on housing benefit of the proposals for affordable rent for social housing. Further details will be made available in due course, so no estimate has been made of the number of households which will be subject to the cap on benefit entitlements where social rents are set at 80% of market rate.

Social Security Benefits

Gordon Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what proportion of the working age population of each constituency in the UK were in receipt of  (a) jobseeker's allowance,  (b) unemployment allowance,  (c) carer's allowance,  (d) disability living allowance,  (e) widow's or bereavement benefit and  (f) other income support in December 2010.

Chris Grayling: A table of the numbers and proportions of the working age population of each constituency in receipt of jobseeker's allowance at December 2010 has been placed in the Library.
	Information for the other benefits requested at December 2010 is not available. Benefit statistics are normally published five and a half months in arrears.
	In some circumstances, claims for benefit can be backdated or there can be a lag between a claim being made and all of the necessary evidence being provided to assess if it is successful. In order to capture the vast majority of such claims, DWP wait for four months after the extract date before beginning the publication process. This provides an acceptable trade-off between quality and timeliness. The level of retrospection is different for housing benefit, council tax benefit and the employment programmes, and for the monthly jobseeker's allowance (claimant count) figures published by the Office for National Statistics. However, the same principle is applied. The published numbers capture the vast majority of these retrospective entries to the computer systems.
	The production of the statistical databases and tables takes about six weeks. Hence the quarterly Statistical Summary is published around five and a half months after the main reference date.
	The schedule of planned statistical publications by the DWP over the next 12 months is published on the Department's website at:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/index.php?page=schedule
	Benefit statistics for August 2010 will be available on 16 March 2011 and statistics for November 2010 on 18 May 2011.
	DWP have introduced a series of experimental early estimates for claimants of "inactive" benefits. These are released just six weeks after the count date. Over the past year, revisions to these figures have been 1 % or less. This methodology was developed for national totals, and no breakdowns are available.

Social Security Benefits: Hearing Impairment

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many of those in receipt of each welfare benefit are deaf.

Maria Miller: The information requested is not available. Information on whether a claimant is deaf is not routinely recorded for all claimants.
	However, information is available on whether the main medical condition for incapacity benefit, severe disablement allowance and employment and support allowance claimants is "Other Hearing Loss", which includes deafness, and whether the main disabling condition for attendance allowance and disability living allowance claimants is deafness.
	The information that is available is presented in the following tables.
	
		
			  Table 1: Incapacity benefit/severe disablement allowance (IB/SDA) and employment and support allowance (ESA) claimants-May 2010 
			   ESA  IB/SDA 
			 All 527,120 2,126,690 
			 "Other Hearing Loss" 810 5,810 
			  Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. For IB/SDA and ESA deafness is included under the disabling condition of "Other Hearing Loss". 3. To qualify for incapacity benefit (IB), claimants have to undertake a medical assessment of incapacity for work called a capability assessment. Under the employment and support allowance regime, new claimants have to undergo the work capability assessment. From April 2011 incapacity benefit recipients will begin also to undertake this assessment. The medical condition recorded on the claim form does not itself confer entitlement to incapacity benefit or employment and support allowance. So, for example, a decision on entitlement for a customer claiming incapacity benefit on the basis of "other hearing loss" would be based on their ability to carry out the range of activities related to physical and mental function, assessed by the personal/work capability assessment. 4. Incapacity benefit was replaced by employment and support allowance (ESA) from October 2008.  Source: DWP Information Directorate 100% WPLS 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Attendance allowance (AA) cases in payment-May 2010 
			   Number 
			 All 1,614,270 
			 Deafness 8,140 
			  Notes: 1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 and show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital. 2. A diagnosed medical condition does not mean that someone is automatically entitled to AA. Entitlement is dependent on an assessment of how much help someone needs with personal care and/or mobility because of their disability.  Source: DWP Information Directorate 100% WPLS 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Disability living allowance (DLA) cases in payment-May 2010 
			   Number 
			 All 3,157,300 
			 Deafness 41,500 
			  Notes: 1. DLA figures are from 5% sample data uprated to 100% proportions. Case load figures are rounded to the nearest hundred. 2. Caution: The preferred statistics on benefits are now derived from 100% data sources. However, the 5% sample data still provides some detail not yet available from the 100% data sources, in particular, more complete information on the disabling condition of DLA claimants. DWP recommends that, where the detail is only available on the 5% sample data, or disabling condition (DLA) is required, the proportions derived should be scaled up to the overall 100% total for the benefit. These figures have been scaled up to the overall total by the application of a single rating factor therefore subtotals based on uprated 5% data may differ from 100% data because of sampling variation in the 5% sample. 3. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 and show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital. 4. A diagnosed medical condition does not mean that someone is automatically entitled to DLA. Entitlement is dependent on an assessment of how much help someone needs with personal care and/or mobility because of their disability.  Source: DWP Information Directorate 100% WPLS

Social Security Benefits: Kirkcaldy

Gordon Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 7 February 2011,  Official Report, columns 84-6W, how many and what proportion of the working age population of Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath constituency were in receipt of  (a) jobseeker's allowance,  (b) unemployment allowance,  (c) carer's allowance,  (d) disability living allowance,  (e) widow's or bereavement benefit and  (f) other income support in December 2010.

Chris Grayling: In December 2010, 3,303 residents of Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath constituency (5.4% of the working age population) were in receipt of jobseeker's allowance(1).
	Information for the other benefits requested at December 2010 is not available. Benefit statistics are normally published five and a half months in arrears.
	In some circumstances, claims for benefit can be backdated or there can be a lag between a claim being made and all of the necessary evidence being provided to assess if it is successful. In order to capture the vast majority of such claims, DWP wait for four months after the extract date before beginning the publication process. This provides an acceptable trade-off between quality and timeliness. The level of retrospection is different for housing benefit, council tax benefit and the employment programmes, and for the monthly jobseeker's allowance (claimant count) figures published by the Office for National Statistics. However, the same principle is applied. The published numbers capture the vast majority of these retrospective entries to the computer systems.
	The production of the statistical databases and tables takes about six weeks. Hence the quarterly Statistical Summary is published around five and a half months after the main reference date.
	The schedule of planned statistical publications by the DWP over the next 12 months is published on the Department's website at:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/index.php?page=schedule
	Benefit statistics for August 2010 will be available on 16 March 2011 and statistics for November 2010 on 18 May 2011.
	DWP have introduced a series of experimental early estimates for claimants of "inactive" benefits. These are released just six weeks after the count date. Over the past year, revisions to these figures have been 1% or less. This methodology was developed for national totals, and no breakdowns are available.
	(1) Source:
	Count of unemployment-related benefits, Jobcentre Plus computer systems (including clerically held cases)

State Retirement Pensions: Females

Anne Begg: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate his Department has made of the number of women who are carers who will be affected by the revised timetable for increasing state pension age to  (a) 65 by 2018 and  (b) 66 by 2020.

Steve Webb: The information requested is not available.
	Such information as is available is in the Labour Force Survey of the fourth quarter of 2010 which indicates that nearly three-quarters of the women affected by the change in the state pension age timetable are currently in employment. It also indicates that 7% of women are not seeking employment due to looking after family or home, which will include those with caring responsibilities.

Unemployment and Early Retirement: Females

Anne Begg: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate his Department has made of the number of women who will  (a) become unemployed and  (b) take early retirement before reaching the state pension age in each year from 2015 to 2020.

Steve Webb: The information requested is not available. Such information as is available is in the table.
	
		
			  Current female labour market status 
			  Percentage 
			   50  51  52  53  54  55  56  57  58  59 
			 Employed 77.7 76.2 76.2 73.3 73.3 74.6 66.8 64.6 66.0 57.0 
			 Unemployed 2.9 2.7 3.0 3.6 2.3 2.1 2.6 3.2 1.9 2.7 
			
			  Inactive   
			 Sick or disabled 9.4 10.9 9.5 12.2 11.6 10.5 12.9 12.4 12.6 16.9 
			 Family or home 6.9 6.7 5.4 7.3 6.8 6.0 8.0 9.2 6.4 6.0 
			 Retired 0.0 0.9 1.1 0.7 2.1 2.3 4.7 6.4 7.7 11.6 
			 Other 3.1 2.7 4.9 2.8 3.9 4.5 4.9 4.1 5.4 5.8 
			 Total inactive 19.4 21.1 20.8 23.0 24.4 23.2 30.7 32.1 32.0 40.3 
			  Notes:  1. Date taken from Quarter 4 2010 Labour Force Survey.  2. The figures in this table are based on a small sample and so should be treated with caution when considering small differences between years or groups.

Work Capability Assessment

Natascha Engel: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions for what reason the additional 6,800 work capability assessment claims started between October 2008 and May 2009 are included in the figures published in October 2010 but were not included in the figures published in January 2010.

Chris Grayling: Employment and support allowance (ESA) was introduced in October 2008. A key factor in determining eligibility for ESA is the work capability assessment (WCA). The WCA is carried out by health care professionals employed by Atos Healthcare. A report of the WCA is then sent to Jobcentre Plus. Jobcentre Plus Decision Makers (JCP DMs) have to consider all the available information before making a decision on benefit entitlement.
	Figures on the assessment result for the first three WCA publications in October 2009, January 2010 and April 2010, were based on the Atos recommendation. At that time this was the only information the Department held centrally on the result of the WCA and we excluded assessments where the result was unknown. From July 2010, information on the JCP DM's decision became available. As this variable reflects the final decision rather than the Atos recommendation the publication was amended to use this variable. One effect of this change was to increase the number of known results which was reflected in the figures.
	The change was fully explained in the July 2010 publication. The relevant section is reproduced here:
	 Annex B: Technical Note
	 Changes to calculation methodology since April 2010 publication
	In this publication assessment outcomes are based on the DWP decision, rather than the ATOS recommendation, as used in previous publications. The DWP decision is made by the Decision Maker in Jobcentre Plus, taking into account the recommendation provided by the ATOS healthcare professional and the evidence provided by the applicant. Data on the final DWP decision has only recently become available centrally. The change has been made to provide more accurate figures on the WCA, as it is the Decision Maker's decision that determines whether ESA will be awarded. Using this variable also means we can include more complete information on people clerically assessed by ATOS as the result of assessment is recorded by the Decision Maker.
	By comparing the results calculated using the DWP decision variable-described above, with those calculated using the ATOS recommendation variable-as used in previous publications, we see the following small changes in the headline WCA outcomes:
	Support Group figure changes from 5% to 6%
	Work Related Activity Group figure changes from 13% to 14%
	Fit for Work figure changes from 40% to 39%
	Claim closed before assessment complete-no change
	Assessment still in progress-no change.
	The full list of WCA publications can be found at:
	http://research.dwp.gov.uk/asd/workingage/esa_wca/index.php?page=esa_wca_arc

TRANSPORT

Aviation: Working Hours

Peter Bottomley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport with reference to the European Aviation Safety Agency's publication OPS 1, Subpart Q, on flight time limitations for air pilots, 
	(1)  what recommendations of the Moebus study were  (a) included and  (b) not included in Subpart Q;
	(2)  what definitions are employed of  (a) the seasonal period and  (b) designated reporting point.

Theresa Villiers: The current flight time limitation requirements in OPS 1 (Annex III to Council Regulation 3922/91) will be replaced by European Aviation Safety Agency implementing rules in 2012. EASA has issued a Notice of Proposed Amendment (NPA) consulting on their proposed implementing rules. The NPA contains details of how the Moebus report was taken into account in the production of the draft guidelines. The NPA also contains the definitions used. The NPA can be downloaded from the EASA website at:
	http://easa.europa.eu/rulemaking/notices-of-proposed-amendment-NPA.php
	The Civil Aviation Authority is currently reviewing the proposals and we will seek to ensure that the final requirements maintain a high level of safety for UK airlines.

Aviation: Working Hours

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what research his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) evaluated on pilot fatigue in the last 10 years.

Theresa Villiers: In the last 10 years the Civil Aviation Authority has commissioned and evaluated:
	A study to investigate the fatigue implications of 12 hour shift patterns operated by police helicopter crews;
	A study into in-flight napping strategies; and
	Continuing studies into sleep patterns which have lead to revisions of CAP 371, "The Avoidance of Fatigue in Aircrews" and the development of the System for Aircrew Fatigue Evaluation (SAFE) computer model. SAFE is used by the CAA to evaluate Flight Time Limitation scheme submissions by operators.
	In addition, the CAA reviews research reports published by other organisations.

Aviation: Working Hours

Henry Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the effects on safety of replacing the Civil Aviation Authority's current CAP 371 flight time limitations with the European Aviation Safety Agency's proposals for such limitations;
	(2)  what assessment his Department has made of the effects of implementing the European Aviation Safety Agency's Notice of Proposed Amendment to flight time limitations.

Theresa Villiers: The European Aviation Safety Agency published draft legislation for consultation on 20 December 2010. The consultation closes on 20 March. The Civil Aviation Authority is currently reviewing the proposals. It will respond to the consultation once it has completed its review. Our aim is to ensure that the final requirements maintain a high level of safety for UK airlines.

Aviation: Working Hours

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what factors he will use in determining whether changes to pilots' flight time limitations being proposed by the European Aviation Safety Agency provide an appropriate level of safety.

Theresa Villiers: The objective of flight time limitations is to ensure that crew members are adequately rested at the beginning of each flying duty period so that they can perform at a satisfactory level of efficiency and safety in all normal and abnormal circumstances arising during flying.
	The Civil Aviation Authority will review the European Aviation Safety Agency's proposals to determine whether they meet that objective.

Aviation: Working Hours

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the effects on safety of the European Aviation Safety Agency's Notice of Proposed Amendment for flight time limitations.

Mike Weatherley: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the potential effect on airline safety of the European Aviation Safety Agency's notice of proposed amendment for flight time limitations;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the European Aviation Safety Agency's proposals on changes to flight time limitations for pilots.

Theresa Villiers: I refer the hon. Members to my answer of 7 February 2011,  Official Report, column 51W, given to the hon. Member for Coventry South (Mr Cunningham).

Bus Services: Finance

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he has undertaken an equality impact assessment on the effect on bus services to changes to  (a) Bus Service Operator Grant,  (b) concessionary fares and  (c) funding settlements for local authorities.

Norman Baker: The Department for Transport has published its equality impact assessments for changes to the Bus Service Operators Grant and the local authority finance simplification on its website at:
	http://www.dft.gov.uk/consultations/eqias/
	The Department for Transport undertook an equality impact assessment screening for the changes to the concessionary travel reimbursement arrangements. Since this indicated no inequalities impact from the changes, a full equality impact assessment was not required.

Bus Services: Finance

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on the effects of reductions in public expenditure on the level of bus services available.

Norman Baker: The Secretary of State has regular discussions with the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government on matters of common interest.

Departmental NDPBs

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what targets have been set for the work of the Highways Agency.

Michael Penning: The Highways Agency's business plan for the 2010-11 financial year was published on 25 March 2010. Copies were placed in the Libraries of both Houses at the time of publication, and can also be found on the agency's website at
	http://www.highways.gov.uk/aboutus/26993.aspx
	The Highways Agency's business plan for 2011-12 will contain measures that will allow the public to judge how well the Highways Agency is managing the strategic road network, but will not set targets as this Government have ended the reliance on top-down performance management to determine the effectiveness of public services.

Galileo System: Finance

Graham Stringer: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what his most recent estimate is of the cost to the UK of the EU Galileo project.

Theresa Villiers: holding answer 8 February 2011
	 In 2007, member states and the Commission agreed a budget of €3.4 billion of EU funds to complete the programme. As a rough indication the UK's pre-abatement contribution to the 2010 EU budget is currently estimated at 14%.
	Galileo's development stage took place before 2007 and was funded by Member state contributions to the European Space Agency (ESA). The UK's contribution was €240.3 million.
	The Commission has recently published a mid-term review of the Galileo programme. The review states that the Commission can not complete the system within the €3.4 billion budget. The Commission now estimates that if the system were to be completed, an additional €1.9 billion would have to be made available for this purpose in the next financial perspective.
	The mid-term review is not a formal legal proposal for this funding.
	The UK believes that rather than increasing the budget, the Commission should look at ways of reducing the scope of the programme to a level that can be achieved within the current budget.
	We are urging the Commission to do this since we believe a system with reduced scope could still provide useful benefits to a wide range of users in the UK.

Highways Agency

John Woodcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will take steps to ensure that all major schemes being undertaken by the Highways Agency are the subject of an up-to-date business case.

Michael Penning: holding answer 9 February 2011
	Appraisal is an ongoing process, and decisions in the 2010 spending review used the most up-to-date information available. An explanation of the analytical methods used at the spending review can be found on the Department's website, with further supporting information on the Highways Agency website.
	http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/roads/network/strategic/highwaystransportschemesdata
	www.highways.gov.uk

HM Coastguard: Costs

Tony Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost to the public purse is of  (a) each regional director in HM Coastguard posts and  (b) the support teams for each such director.

Michael Penning: The current direct costs of employment for the three Maritime and Coastguard Agency regional directors and the cost of the support provided to them, is £253,344.
	These three regional directors and their support teams discharge a wide range of duties and responsibilities. Among other things these duties include responsibility for HM Coastguard operational delivery. The proportion of HM Coastguard related activities will vary depending on the number of issues that arise and require their personal attention. For practical purposes we would estimate this to lie somewhere in the range of 10% to 20%.
	The cost of this coastguard-related work is estimated at between £39,000 per annum and £62,000 per annum.

Lorries: Sleep Apnoea

Meg Munn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will estimate the proportion of drivers of large goods vehicles of each age group who suffer from obstructive sleep apnoea.

Michael Penning: The information requested is not held.

Railways: Construction

Steven Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he plans to take to ensure that residents in areas north of Birmingham potentially affected by high speed rail have the opportunity to participate in his Department's consultation on the principle of high-speed rail.

Philip Hammond: As set out in the Department for Transport's Business Plan, the Government propose to consult on its strategy for high speed rail and on its proposed route for an initial line from London to the West Midlands between February and July 2011. All residents of the UK will have the opportunity to offer their views on the proposals either online, or by requesting paper or electronic versions of the documents via the consultation website or by telephone.
	Paper versions of all the consultation documents will also be available at central libraries or at local council offices along the proposed London to West Midlands route.

Railways: Franchising

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether he will have powers to prevent train operating companies changing local rail services under new franchises.

Theresa Villiers: Rail franchise agreements will require operators to provide the contracted level of service. These will be rigorously enforced. Operators will be able to make changes to the timing of train services and may-on a case by case basis-be given greater freedom than now to change frequencies or other elements of the service.

Railways: Industrial Disputes

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to the answer of 31 January 2011,  Official Report, column 539W, on railways: industrial disputes, and with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Islington North of 15 May 2003,  Official Report, column 340W, on rail strikes, when it became his Department's policy to withhold information on payments made to individual train operating companies; how much was paid in compensation to train operating companies in each year since 2005-06; and when the last such payment was made.

Theresa Villiers: holding answer 14 February 2011
	There is no general policy to withhold information on payments made to individual train operating companies (TOCs), but the Department for Transport has always exercised its right to withhold, on a case-by-case basis, information on any payment it considers commercially sensitive.
	Since 2005-06, compensation payments have only been made in one year (2006) and that was the last payment made to date.

Roads: Accidents

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many wheelchair users were  (a) killed and  (b) injured in accidents when travelling in a taxi or minibus in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

Norman Baker: I regret that the information collected on death and injuries to the occupants of taxis and minibuses does not contain any information on the disability status of casualties.

Roads: Snow and Ice

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what estimate his Department has made of the proportion of local authorities which have levels of salt in store at or below the recommended minimum;
	(2)  what steps his Department is taking to ensure replenishment of road salt stocks; what steps he plans to take to ensure the adequacy of stocks to meet a future severe winter; and if he will make a statement.

Norman Baker: In aggregate, highways authorities started the winter period with significantly higher salt stocks than last year. The recommendations of the winter resilience review related to the level of local authority pre-winter stocks; there is no recommended "running minimum" levels in-winter. It is the responsibility of each Highway Authority to make appropriate arrangements to ensure its winter resilience levels. The Government arranged for the Highways Agency to import 250,000 tonnes of salt as a strategic national reserve in accordance with the recommendations of the winter resilience review, to be available through the 2010-11 winter season.
	Due to the unusually early onset of prolonged severe winter weather inevitably led to salt stocks being utilised at a faster rate in November and December than normal. The Department for Transport has been regularly monitoring stocks held by local authorities and has taken necessary action including releasing some of the national strategic stockpile to English local authorities with low resilience, making arrangements for the import of a further volume of salt of around 273,500 tonnes as a precautionary measure and, following an urgent audit by David Quarmby, providing new guidance to highway authorities on salt spread rates.
	These steps taken have ensured that the country is in a better and more resilient position than we were during last winter. At the end of January 2011 and taking results from the most recent complete survey, total salt stocks held in Great Britain, including strategic stockpiles was 971,494 tonnes this is compared to around 270,493 tonnes held on 1 February 2010.
	However, we are not complacent and it is important that local highway authorities take action to implement the recommendations of David Quarmby's report in October 2010 and the more recent audit in December 2010 to ensure that they are better prepared for future winters. The Department for Transport will continue to maintain a strategic stockpile where conditions warrant it, as recommended by the report, for future winters.

Rolling Stock: Procurement

Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how the planned additional train carriages to increase capacity on the rail network will be distributed among franchised operators.

Theresa Villiers: A total of 647 additional carriages have been contracted with franchised train operators, the distribution of which is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  TOC  Number 
			 One (NXEA) 188 
			 First Capital Connect 153 
			 East Midlands Trains 8 
			 London Midland 28 
			 Intercity West Coast 106 
			 Chiltern 8 
			 First Great Western 30 
			 South Central 60 
			 South Eastern 48 
			 Northern 18 
			 England-Total 647 
		
	
	The Department for Transport has re-started discussions with four train operating companies (First Great Western, London Midland, South West Trains and Northern) about plans to provide additional carriages. The companies are currently developing updated proposals for consideration by the Department, and until these have been evaluated and been subject to commercial negotiations, it is not possible to be certain as to which rolling stock will eventually be used by each operator. We expect to make announcements on this matter later this year.
	Additionally, the Secretary of State confirmed on 25 November 2010 that the Thameslink project will go ahead in full and that a new fleet of around 1,200 additional carriages will be introduced on services across London by 2018. A further 650 carriages will also be provided for Crossrail services by 2019.

Salt

George Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost was of procurement of the strategic stockpile of rock salt; what the volume of rock salt so procured was; what costs have been incurred in storing that stockpile; which companies were  (a) shortlisted and  (b) chosen to supply the strategic stockpile of rock salt; and what estimate he has made of the difference between the costs of that procurement and the costs of procurement on the open market.

Norman Baker: As a result of the recommendation for establishing a national strategic stockpile, made by the independent winter resilience review, the Secretary of State for Transport agreed that 250,000 tonnes of rock salt be procured by the Highways Agency in addition to the 60,000 tonnes the agency was planning to use as further reserve stock. Following the severe winter conditions in November 2010, the Secretary of State agreed that the agency to procure an additional 273,500 of strategic salt stock.
	The majority of the salt for the strategic stock pile is currently being held at port locations around England. The cost of procuring the salt which includes storage arrangements is estimated to cost in the region of £31 million. The cost of storage beyond the end of the winter season is currently being reviewed.
	The Highways Agency which was tasked with facilitating the establishment of the strategic salt stock pile, has worked with its service providers utilising existing contracts to import the salt. Consequently no shortlisting exercise was required. Highways Agency contractors had placed orders with the following salt supply companies:
	Salinity UK;
	Cleveland Potash;
	Salt Union;
	Nationwide Gritting Services;
	Peacocks;
	NW Trading; and
	Azelis Broste.
	The costs incurred for the procurement of strategic salt are in line with costs incurred for salt imports over the last two winters and are therefore considered in line with open market rates.

Snow and Ice

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what preparation for winter weather his Department made prior to the severe weather of December 2010;
	(2)  what recent discussions he has had with the Met Office on predicted weather conditions for next winter; and what steps his Department is taking to deal with predicted weather conditions.

Norman Baker: holding answer 27 January 2011
	I refer my hon. Friend to the statements made by the Secretary of State for Transport, my right hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond), which highlight the actions taken to ensure that going into the winter the UK was in a much more resilient position than in recent years:
	Response to the review of the resilience of England's transport systems in winter, written statement 22 October 2010,  Official Report, column 78WS;
	Response to urgent question on winter weather, 2 December 2010,  Official Report, column 965;
	Severe winter weather, oral statement, 20 December 2010,  Official Report, column 1216; and
	Winter resilience review, written statement, 21 December 2010,  Official Report, column 169WS.
	The Department for Transport maintains close liaison with the Met Office to pay particular attention to possible impacts of a range of seasonal weather conditions on transport networks. During the period of extreme cold weather in December 2010, a Met Office forecaster was embedded in the Department for Transport to provide dedicated briefings to Ministers and officials, including attending meetings of the Winter Network Group which was set up to monitor salt stock around the country.
	In addition we are currently considering advice received from Professor Sir John Beddington on the longer-term implications of the changing climate in relation to winter resilience.

Southeastern

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  what representations he has received on the future of the Integrated Kent Franchise;
	(2)  what criteria his Department will use to assess Southeastern's performance in relation to any proposed extension of its franchise to 2014.

Theresa Villiers: The franchise contract agreed with Southeastern by the previous administration includes a continuation review. The terms of the franchise provide that if the targets contained in the contract are met by Southeastern, the Department for Transport is obliged to offer the train operator a two-year extension of its franchise to cover the period 1 April 2012 to 31 March 2014.
	The franchise continuation criteria for the Southeastern franchise is specified under Schedule 18 of the National Rail Franchise Terms, which can be found at the following link:
	http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/passenger/publicregister/current/lser/lsernational.pdf
	The Secretary of State and I have received representations regarding the continuation criteria for the Southeastern franchise and the future specification for the next franchise. When Southeastern's contract is due for renewal, departmental officials will be seeking the views of stakeholders across Kent and South East London in a consultation which will form part of the franchise replacement process.

Southeastern

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much he estimates Southeastern will receive from the public purse in each year of the current franchise agreement; and if he will estimate how much it will receive from the public purse in each year of any extended franchise.

Theresa Villiers: The Department for Transport published the payment profile for the Integrated Kent franchise at the time of awarding the franchise towards the end of 2005. This profile can be found via the following link:
	http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/rail/passenger/franchises/franchisepaymentprofiles
	The Department does not publish further estimates of franchise payments after commencement of franchises. However, the Office of Rail Regulation publishes actual subsidy payments and information on passenger journeys in its National Rail Trends document. This information for 2009-10 can be found on page 64 of the document on the Office of Rail Regulation website at:
	http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/upload/pdf/nrt-yearbook-2009-10.pdf
	In addition a copy of Rail Trends is available in the Libraries of the House.

Tolls: Lorries

David Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what  (a) costs and  (b) benefits of his proposed road pricing scheme for hauliers he has identified; and what estimate he has made of likely annual (i) revenue from (A) foreign and (B) UK based hauliers, (ii) implementation costs and (iii) funds available for a rebate to UK based hauliers.

Michael Penning: The Government are committed to bringing in an HGV road user charge to ensure a fairer arrangement for UK hauliers and end the widespread anomaly whereby UK hauliers pay to use roads abroad, while foreign hauliers do not pay to use UK roads.
	We are working to develop a practical and cost-effective scheme that is broadly revenue neutral for UK hauliers. Further details will be announced in due course.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Higher Education

Amber Rudd: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what his policy is on widening access to higher education for students from disadvantaged backgrounds; and if he will make a statement.

David Willetts: This Government are committed to social mobility. That is why our higher education reforms have no payments up-front, more generous maintenance support and the extension of loans to part-time students. Last week we outlined details of our £150 million National Scholarship Programme and gave updated guidance to the Director of Fair Access about access agreements.

Higher Education

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to paragraph 4.4 of the Guidance to the Director of Fair Access, whether he has plans to publish the names of individual  (a) universities and  (b) courses which are to be referred to in access agreements as offering the greatest financial benefit to students.

David Willetts: The Government have no plans to compile such a list. Information for each university on previous graduate salaries, together with employment destinations, is one of the items included in the proposed Key Information Set (KIS), which will provide a standard set of 17 items of information for each course, to be made available on university websites. The KIS is based on what students have said they find useful.

Higher Education

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills with reference to paragraph 4.4 of the guidance to the Director of Fair Access, which courses offer the greatest financial benefit to students.

David Willetts: holding answer 16 February 2011
	Information on the financial benefits of different courses at broad subject group level is available from the Office for National Statistics' Labour Force Survey (LFS). Similar information can be obtained for graduate starting salaries from the Higher Education Statistics Agency's annual Destinations of Leavers from HE (DLHE) survey(1).
	Information for each university on previous graduate salaries, together with employment destinations, is one of the items included in the proposed Key Information Set (KIS), which will provide a standard set of 17 items of information for each course, to be made available on university websites.
	(1 )Available at
	http://www.hesa.ac.uk/index.php?option=com_content &task=view&id=1899&Itemid=239

Royal Mail

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with Royal Mail on the future of the inter-business agreement with the Post Office.

Edward Davey: I and my officials have had further discussions with Royal Mail and Post Office Limited regarding the work which will need to be done to separate the two businesses.
	The Inter Business Agreement is a commercial contract to be agreed between the two businesses and the Royal Mail chairman has committed to agree the longest term legally permissible for that contract.
	Neither myself nor my officials have, or will be involved in the detailed negotiation of the agreement.

Apprenticeships

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many apprenticeship starts there have been in the academic year 2010-11 to date.

John Hayes: It seems that apprenticeships are a popular subject today. And no wonder, as last week was National Apprenticeship Week, which saw over 450 events being held across the country, showcasing the benefits of apprenticeships and the value apprentices bring to organisations and individuals.
	Provisional data show that there were 119,800 apprenticeship starts in the first quarter of the 2010/11 academic year (August 2010 to October 2010).
	However, we will not have final data for the 2010/11 academic year until November 2011 and provisional participation data cannot be compared against final data from earlier academic years.

Groceries Supply Code

Charles Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what progress has been made on establishing a body to monitor and enforce the groceries supply code of practice; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Davey: The Groceries Code Adjudicator Bill is currently being drafted. The aim is to publish the draft Bill around Easter, allowing time for pre-legislative scrutiny. The Bill will be introduced as soon as parliamentary time allows.

Small Businesses

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent representations he has received on support for small businesses.

Mark Prisk: The Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills meets regularly with national business representative bodies-such as the British Chambers of Commerce, the Institute of Directors, and the Confederation of British Industry-and with other representatives of business where a wide range of matters are discussed.

Apprentices

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many new apprenticeship places for those aged  (a) 18 to 24 and  (b) 16 to 18 years he plans to create in the 2011-12 academic year.

John Hayes: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 10 February 2011,  Official Report, column 385W, to his question asking how many apprenticeship places for people aged  (a) 16 to 18 years and  (b) 18 to 24 years funding has been allocated for in the academic year 2011-12.
	Apprenticeships are funded by both the Department for Business Innovation and Skills (19+) and the Department for Education (16-18). The Government are strongly committed to investment in apprenticeships for people of all ages. Funding for apprenticeships will increase to over £1,400 million in the 2011-12 financial year: £799 million for 16 to 18-year-olds; £605 million for those aged 19 and over.(1)
	For 16 to 18-year-olds, the YPLA document "16 to 19 Funding Statement" (December 2010) states that funding will be sufficient to have 133,500 apprentice starts in the 2011/12 academic year. For adults (19 years and over), our indicative forecast is for 227,100 starts in 2011/12(2). This means we are committed to have funding in place to train over 360,000 apprentices (at all ages) in the 2011/12 academic year.
	Funding for adult apprenticeships (19+) is not further differentiated by age and there are no specific allocations for the 18-24 age group.
	(1) 16-18 figures: 16-19 Funding Statement, YPLA (December 2010); 19+ figures: Investing in Skills for Sustainable Growth, BIS (November 2010)
	(2) Hansard
	www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201011/cmhansrd/cm110125/text/110125w0004.htm

Apprentices

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps is he taking to create more apprenticeship places for those aged  (a) 16 to 18 and  (b) 18 to 24 years in the 2011-12 academic year.

John Hayes: We are committed to increasing the number and range of apprenticeships on offer for people of all ages. We are determined to take real action to improve and expand the apprenticeships programme and create more apprenticeship opportunities than ever before. That is why we have increased our investment to over £1,400 million in the 2011/12 financial year: £799 million for 16 to 18-year-olds; £605 million for those aged 19 and over.(1)
	For 16 to 18-year-olds, the YPLA document "16 to 19 Funding Statement" (December 2010) states that funding will be sufficient to have 133,500 apprentice starts in the 2011/12 academic year. For adults (19 years and over), our indicative forecast is for 227,100 starts in 2011/12(2). This means we are committed to have funding in place to train over 360,000 apprentices (at all ages) in the 2011/12 academic year. This investment in our future will help train the next generation, as well as developing the existing workforce, which is vital to build a modern advanced economy.
	The National Apprenticeships Service (NAS) and the Skills Funding Agency (SFA) are working with training providers and encouraging employers to make these places available. Last week was Apprenticeship Week in England, which saw over 500 events taking place across the country to celebrate apprenticeships and promote the benefits of apprenticeships to both employers and learners. NAS is also running a marketing campaign, focussed on medium and large employers, contacting thousands of large private and public sector employers to promote the benefits of apprenticeships to their business.
	We are also working to make it easier for businesses to take on apprentices and access the benefits they bring. We are working to reduce bureaucracy and making the system simpler for employers, colleges, and learners alike and we are considering how we might better support employers to access the benefits of the programme.
	(1) 16-18 figures: 16-19 Funding Statement, YPLA (December 2010); 19+ figures: Investing in Skills for Sustainable Growth, BIS (November 2010).
	(2 ) Hansard :
	www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201011/cmhansrd/cm110125/text/110125w0004.htm

Arms Trade

Duncan Hames: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills to which countries the exports of defence equipment has been supported by the UK Trade and Investment Defence and Security Organisation in the last three years.

Mark Prisk: In the last three years, UK Trade and Investment Defence and Security Organisation has provided a range of support on behalf of UK defence and security companies marketing defence and security goods and services in relation to the following overseas markets:
	Algeria
	Angola
	Argentina
	Austria
	Australia
	Bahrain
	Bangladesh
	Bolivia
	Brazil
	Belgium
	Botswana
	Brunei
	Bulgaria
	Canada
	Chile
	China and Special Administrative Region Hong Kong
	Colombia
	Croatia
	Czech Republic
	Denmark
	Democratic Republic of Congo
	Estonia
	Egypt
	Finland
	France
	Georgia
	Germany
	Greece
	India
	Indonesia
	Iraq
	Ireland
	Italy
	Jamaica
	Japan
	Jordan
	Kazakhstan
	Republic of Korea
	Kuwait
	Latvia
	Lebanon
	Libya
	Lithuania
	Luxembourg
	Macedonia
	Malaysia
	Mexico
	Morocco
	Netherlands
	New Zealand
	Nigeria
	Norway
	Oman
	Pakistan
	Peru
	Poland
	Portugal
	Qatar
	Romania
	Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
	Serbia
	Singapore
	South Africa
	Spain
	Switzerland
	Sweden
	Taiwan
	Thailand
	Trinidad and Tobago
	Turkey
	Ukraine
	United Arab Emirates
	United States of America
	Venezeula
	Vietnam.

Business Investment Scheme

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what assessment he has made of the effect on support for private sector jobs in  (a) Easington constituency and  (b) the North East of the end of the Grants for Business Investment scheme.

Mark Prisk: We announced a new approach to local growth in the Local Growth White Paper (Cm 7961) presented to Parliament on 28 October 2010. This will
	(a) shift power to local businesses and communities;
	(b) create the right conditions for growth and prosperity by promoting efficient and dynamic markets and
	(c) support focused investment that will have a long-term impact on growth.
	This fundamental re-thinking of local growth includes the regional growth fund (RGF). While the RGF has different objectives and criteria to the grant for business investment (GBI) scheme (which is now considering applications on an exceptional basis only), it is much larger-it has £1.4 billion over three years at its disposal compared to total GBI expenditure of £54 million in 2009/10-and is focused to support those areas and communities that are currently dependent on the public sector make the transition to sustainable private sector-led growth.
	Sound projects and programmes that create sustainable private sector jobs in Easington and the North East can apply to the RGF.
	Overall, the changes we have introduced will improve support for private sector job creation in those areas.

Business: Energy

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) records the number of energy contracts mis-sold to small and medium-sized enterprises by third party intermediaries; and how many complaints the OFT has received from small and medium-sized enterprises on such mis-selling in the latest period for which figures are available.

Edward Davey: The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) does not record the number of energy contracts mis-sold to small and medium sized enterprises by third party intermediaries. However, the number of allegations about such mis-selling by third party intermediaries brought to the OFT's attention and recorded by Consumer Direct is 13 over the 12 month period 1 December 2009 to 30 November 2010.

Business: Energy

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will direct the Office of Fair Trading to use the powers available to it under the Business Protection from Misleading Marketing Regulations 2008 in respect of action against third party energy intermediaries that mis-sell energy contracts to small and medium-sized enterprises.

Edward Davey: The OFT's Consumer Markets Group has considered whether to take action on this issue under the Business Protection from Misleading Marketing Regulations 2008. Although the OFT has not taken action to date, it is interested in receiving evidence to enable it to assess whether the problem is widespread. Anyone with evidence should contact the OFT.

Business: Rural Areas

Julian Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he plans to take to provide incentives to contractors to promote business support in rural areas.

Mark Prisk: The Department does not envisage providing any specific incentives to contractors to promote business support in rural areas.
	Businesses will be able to access:
	Online business information and tools tailored to each business' needs, through improvements to the:
	www.businesslink.gov.uk
	website or for those who cannot access the information they need on the web or who are not connected to the internet, a national contact centre;
	A network of at least 40,000 experienced business mentors offering practical advice to existing businesses and people who want to start a business;
	International trade development support provided by UKTI;
	The Manufacturing Advisory Service; and
	Business Coaching for Growth targeted at agglomerations of businesses with high growth potential.
	Local Economic Partnerships (LEPs), including those covering rural areas, may also seek to provide additional support to their local businesses.

Climate Change Projects Office: Greater London

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of businesses in  (a) the London Borough of Bexley and  (b) Greater London who have received advice and support from the Climate Change Projects Office in each year since its inception.

Mark Prisk: The Department does not keep statistics to this level of detail, but during the last financial year (2009/10) the Climate Change Projects Office provided advice and support to more than 120 companies, some of whom were based in London.

Community Interest Companies

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many community interest companies were registered in each parliamentary constituency in each of the last 10 years.

Edward Davey: Community Interest Companies (CICS) were established in 2005. Neither Companies House nor the CICS Regulator's Office holds any information on them broken down by parliamentary constituencies.

Debts: Advisory Services

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what initiatives he has for the promotion of free and impartial debt advice.

Edward Davey: The Government are committed to helping poorer households to access appropriate financial services, to improve their financial resilience and to avoid falling into unsustainable levels of debt.
	The Government announced on 12 February that a further £27 million will be made available in 2011/12 to support face-to-face debt advice provided by the Citizens Advice Bureaux and other independent advice agencies across England and Wales.
	This Department will also continue to support the National Debtline, a telephone advice service by providing funding of £1 million in 2011-12.

Fair Access

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills which persons and organisations responded to his Department's consultation on the draft guidance to the Director of Fair Access issued in December 2010; and if he will place in the Library a copy of each of those responses.

David Willetts: holding answer 16 February 2011
	We published a draft version of our guidance to the Director of Fair Access on 7 December 2010, inviting comments. A number of organisations and individuals commented, formally and informally, and we took all views into account in taking our decisions about the contents of the final guidance letter. We have no plans to publish the comments made.

Fair Access

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills for what reasons the final guidance issued to the Director of Fair Access does not include the contents of paragraph 6.1 in the draft guidance.

David Willetts: holding answer 16 February 2011
	 Paragraph 6.1 was unnecessary as it provided no new information.

Fossil Fuels

Zac Goldsmith: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what definition of dirty fossil fuel energy production his Department uses.

Edward Davey: The definition used by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills is that "dirty" fossil fuel power generation means unabated coal-fired power stations.

Higher Education: Admissions

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on collaboration between schools and universities on outreach work; and what steps have been taken as a result of such discussions.

David Willetts: These matters are regularly discussed. Most recently, the Secretary of State for Business Innovation and Skills, the Secretary of State for Education and I met my right hon. Friend the Member for Bermondsey and Old Southwark (Simon Hughes) to discuss his role as advocate for access to education. He will work with the Government to support their goal of increasing participation in further and higher education by those from the most disadvantaged backgrounds.

Higher Education: Admissions

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he plans to provide information to university applicants on the performance of individual institutions against the access performance indicators identified in paragraph 6 of the Guidance to the Director of Fair Access.

David Willetts: We expect all universities to improve the quality of information that they provide to prospective students. The access performance indicators show the performance of individual institutions against different benchmarks. They are published annually by the Higher Education Statistics Agency on its website, and we expect that this will continue.

Higher Education: Admissions

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he plans to publish contextual data used by universities following the Guidance to the Director of Fair Access at the level of individual  (a) universities and  (b) courses.

David Willetts: We have no plans to publish the contextual data used by universities. Universities are responsible for their own admissions policies and decisions. Whether to use such information is up to each university, as they will be best placed to decide on the information that will help to identify the candidates with the talent and potential to succeed at that institution or on a particular course. The Government believe that the use of such data is a valid and appropriate way for institutions to broaden access while maintaining excellence, so long as individuals are considered on their merits, and institutions' procedures are fair, transparent and evidence-based.

Higher Education: Admissions

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what consultation he carried out prior to issuing his Department's Guidance to the Director of Fair Access, February 2011; which organisations participated in his consultation; and whether he plans to publish the outcome of the consultation.

David Willetts: We published a draft version of our guidance to the Director of Fair Access on 7 December, inviting comments. A number of organisations and individuals commented, formally and informally, and we took all views into account in taking our decisions about the contents of the final guidance letter. We have no plans to publish the comments made.

Higher Education: Admissions

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he plans to make access agreements for individual universities known to potential applicants to those universities.

David Willetts: All agreed access agreements are publicly available on the website of the Office for Fair Access. We would expect all universities to ensure that potential applicants were made aware of the details of any access agreement that might affect them, such as possible fee waivers.

Higher Education: Admissions

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what the low participation neighbourhoods referred to in paragraph 6 of the Guidance to the Director of Fair Access, February 2011 are.

David Willetts: One of the access indicators published as part of the "Performance Indicators in Higher Education" by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) covers the proportion of students from low participation neighbourhoods (LPNs).
	The LPN indicator has been produced using POLAR2 (Participation of Local AReas). This method is based on the HE participation rates of people who were aged 18 between 2000 and 2004 and entered a HE course in a UK higher education institution or GB further education college, aged 18 or 19, between academic years 2000/01 and 2005/06. It draws on data provided by the Higher Education Statistics Agency, the Learning and Skills Council, the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service, the other UK funding bodies and HM Revenue and Customs.
	The POLAR2 classification is formed by ranking 2001 Census Area Statistics wards by their young participation rates for the combined 2000 to 2004 cohorts. This gives five young participation quintile groups of areas ordered from '1' (those wards with the lowest participation) to '5' (those wards with the highest participation), each representing 20% of UK young cohort. Students have been allocated to the neighbourhoods on the basis of their postcode. Those students whose postcode falls within wards with the lowest participation (quintile 1) are denoted as being from a low participation neighbourhood. The names of the wards and their corresponding local authority district in England and Wales classified as low participation neighbourhoods will be placed in the Libraries of the House.

Higher Education: Admissions

James Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the amount spent by each university on outreach activities in the latest period for which figures are available; and what estimate he has made of the level of such spending in each of the next five years.

David Willetts: Each university decides for itself how much to invest in outreach activities, and will do so in future. The director of Fair Access, in his annual report(1), shows how much each institution is currently spending on outreach under their access agreements, and this information will continue to be publicly available. Neither the Department nor the director seeks to record all university outreach expenditure.
	(1) The last annual report "Office for Fair Access Annual Report and Accounts 2009-10" was published in June 2010.

Local Enterprise Partnerships

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 19 January 2011,  Official Report, column 832W, on local enterprise partnerships, what successor bodies other than local enterprise partnerships may be established to take on the functions of regional development agencies; and if he will make a statement.

Mark Prisk: Plans for the future of the functions currently carried out by the regional development agencies are still to be finalised. Some functions will pass to central Government Departments and other existing public bodies; other functions will be wound down. Consideration is still being given to arrangements for managing residuary RDA assets and liabilities. In London, the LDA will be folded into the GLA and it will be for the Mayor to decide how to take forward his priorities for economic development.

Manpower

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he 
	(1)  expects to transfer staff from his Whitehall offices to his Department's new regional offices; and whether he expects to recruit staff of regional offices locally;
	(2)  plans to have discussions with the heads of regional development agencies on the potential for transfer of their staff to his Department's new regional offices.

Mark Prisk: Staff have been recruited from the Government offices for the regions in a process agreed by Departments and the relevant trade unions. Officials have held discussions with the heads of the regional development agencies and the transfer of staff from the regional development agencies is expected to follow Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations principles.

Manpower

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of staff who will be employed in his Department's new regional offices in 2011-12.

Mark Prisk: The Department is aiming to establish six local offices, each with approximately eight staff.

Money Lenders

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he plans to take to protect the public against unscrupulous loan sharks.

Edward Davey: Since 2004 the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills has provided funding of more than £21 million to fund specialist regional teams across the country to tackle the problem of those lenders who operate without a licence.
	To date, the teams have helped more than 16,000 victims, written off £37 million of illegal debt and secured over 180 convictions with sentences totalling 70 years.
	On 29 December 2010, the Government announced further funding to continue the Illegal Money Lending Project throughout 2011/12 to protect vulnerable individuals and families across the country against the dangers of loan sharks.

National Regional Development Agency Transition Programme Board

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will publish the plans submitted to the National Regional Development Agency Transition Programme Board by each regional development agency on the future of the assets they hold.

Mark Prisk: holding answer 16 February 2011
	The regional development agencies (RDAs) submitted detailed assets and liabilities plans to BIS on 31 January. These plans are currently being scrutinised and assets will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Owing to the anticipated market and commercial sensitivity of the RDA asset disposal plans, and the desire to achieve best value for the taxpayer, it is not expected that they will be made publicly available at the present time. However, it will be up to the RDAs themselves to decide whether and how to publish their assets and liabilities plans, taking into account the sensitivity of any of the information they may contain.
	The general principles upon which decisions on the disposal of RDA assets and liabilities will be made have already been set out in the Local Growth White Paper and repeated in a statement sent to the Libraries of the House on 10 February 2010 and which can be found at:
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/policies/economic-development/englands-regional-development-agencies/assets/statement-on-rda-assets-and-liabilities

New Businesses: Bexley

David Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to encourage small business start-ups in Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency.

Mark Prisk: Business Link in London (BLIL), funded by the London Development Agency (LDA), supports small business start-ups across London, including the Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency. BLIL offers solutions to meet small business needs, including:
	Fact sheets, such as, sector specific information, guidance on a range of business matters
	On-line tools
	Referrals to specific regulatory bodies and other support organisations.
	Under current delivery arrangements, BLIL continue to deliver a number of free "Starting A Business" workshops which are held at various venues throughout London.
	The Government have announced plans to make it easier to start and grow a business across England, are set out in our paper "Bigger, Better Business", on 5 January 2011. This will include:
	Improving the support aimed at start-ups online through, a dedicated start-up hub within the national Business Link website:
	www.businesslink.gov.uk
	Help for start-ups through a tailored package of measures, including an expansion in the planned new enterprise allowance, to help the unemployed become self-employed
	A network of at least 40,000 experienced business mentors offering practical advice to existing businesses and people who want to start a business.
	I should add that the Government will be working alongside an extensive range of private sector and business support organisations to help start-ups and existing businesses identify and utilise all the support available, both online and offline.

Older People: Scotland

Ian Davidson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of the number of people in Scotland likely to be affected by the end of the default retirement age; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Davey: In removing the default retirement age we are removing a regulation that restricts people's ability to remain in the labour market. Our impact assessment estimates that around 6,000 additional workers are likely to remain in the work force across the UK in the first year. No separate estimate was made for Scotland. The full impact assessment was published on 13 January and is available at:
	http://bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/employment-matters/docs/p/11-634-phasing-out-default-retirement-age-impact-assessment.pdf

One North East

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he has made an assessment of the effects on the economy of the North East of the removal of grants previously provided by One North East.

Mark Prisk: No assessment has been made of the effects on the economy of the north east of the removal of grants previously provided by One North East.
	Reorganising the delivery of economic development will ensure a more focussed approach which is not based on regional agencies with arbitrary regional boundaries, a lack of local accountability, and multiple objectives. It will also not be based on unsustainable levels of public spending.

Patents: EU Action

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent progress has been made towards the establishment of the EU Patents Court.

Edward Davey: Formal negotiations on a draft agreement for a European Patents Court are currently on hold while an opinion of the European Court of Justice on the compatibility of the draft agreement with the EU Treaty is pending. There is reason to believe that the opinion will be published in early March 2011.

Regional Development Agencies

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills 
	(1)  who will be responsible for decisions arising from recommendations from the National Regional Development Agency Transition Programme Board on the disposal of assets of regional development agencies;
	(2)  what plans he has to establish arrangements to facilitate representations from local enterprise boards on the disposal of Regional Development Agency assets in that area.

Mark Prisk: During the preparation of their Assets and Liabilities Plans, regional development agencies (RDAs), liaised with local authorities, local enterprise partnerships (LEPs) and other local partners.
	Decisions on disposals and transfers, will be made on a case by case basis and remain based on the principles in the 1998 RDA Act, namely to further the economic development and regeneration of RDA's areas.
	RDA chief executives, as accounting officers, with the approval of their boards, have responsibility for the disposal of RDA assets and liabilities, and for liaising with LEPs, local partners and other interested parties.

Regional Development Agencies

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills whether he has any plans to include local enterprise board representatives on the National Regional Development Agency Transition Programme Board.

Mark Prisk: The National Regional Development Agency (RDA) Transition Programme Board is organised according to Office of Government Commerce 'Managing Successful Programmes' guidelines to ensure effective, streamlined decision-making. The board includes the Director of the Economic Development Directorate (EDD) in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. Her responsibilities include the development and delivery of policy on local enterprise partnerships, working jointly with the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), who are also represented on the National RDA Transition Programme Board.
	The board provides direction and challenge to the RDA Boards, which are responsible for delivering an orderly closure and transition of their respective agencies. The RDA boards include representatives of local authorities some of whom are also members of local enterprise partnerships.

Regional Development Agencies

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what criteria the National Regional Transition Programme Board will use to decide whether regional development agency assets will be transferred to local enterprise partnerships.

Mark Prisk: The transfer or disposal of assets and liabilities will be undertaken in accordance with the Regional Development Agencies Act 1998 until new legislation comes into force. The approach to be adopted will follow that set out in the Local Growth White Paper [CM7961] and the statement made on 10 February, a copy of which is in the Library of the House.

Regional Development Agency

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what liaison his Department's new regional offices will have with regional development agency offices while the latter remain in existence.

Mark Prisk: This Department is working to achieve a smooth transition to RDA closure and the Department's new local offices will have an important role in helping to co-ordinate this process.

Regional Development Agency

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills on how many occasions the National Regional Development Agency (RDA) Transition Programme Board is scheduled to meet to consider future options for the assets held by the RDAs.

Mark Prisk: The RDAs put forward their own plans for the disposal of assets and liabilities at the end of January 2011. These will be reviewed by the RDA National Transition Programme Board and agreed by the RDAs' own boards. The National RDA Transition Programme Board will meet four times to consider the RDA plans for their assets and liabilities. Its consideration will be supported by detailed analysis carried out by a group with appropriate expertise which includes members from BIS, DCLG and the Treasury. This will allow the systematic disposal of RDA assets and liabilities to begin in or around April 2011.

Regional Development Agency

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what consultation he had with stakeholders prior to the creation of the National Regional Development Agency Transition Programme Board.

Mark Prisk: The creation of the National Regional Development Agency (RDA) Transition Programme Board was carried out in consultation with the RDA network and with Government Departments responsible for funding the RDAs.
	The board is organised according to Office of Government Commerce "Managing Successful Programmes" guidelines to ensure effective, streamlined decision-making. It will provide direction and challenge to the RDA boards, which are responsible for delivering an orderly closure and transition of their respective RDAs.

Regional Development Agency

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how the area covered by the South East Economic Development Agency will be represented on the National Regional Development Agency Transition Programme Board.

Mark Prisk: This response assumes that the question refers to the South East England Development Agency. The network of regional development agencies (RDAs), including South East England Development Agency (SEEDA), is represented on the National RDA Transition Programme Board by three RDA representatives selected by the RDA chief executives themselves.

Regional Government

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills what role his Department's new regional offices will have in advising the National Regional Development Agency Transition Board on the disposal of assets held by regional development agencies.

Mark Prisk: holding answer 16 February 2011
	All regional development agencies have submitted transition plans which we are currently reviewing.

Regional Government

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Blackpool South of 8 February 2011,  Official Report, column 216W, on regional government, if he will publish the responses to the consultation that he held with business organisations and local enterprise partnerships on the need for his Department to have presence outside of Whitehall.

Mark Prisk: Support for the BIS local offices has been expressed during informal discussions between the Department, business organisations and local enterprise partnerships.

Regional Growth Fund

Nick Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many pooled bids he has received for funds from the Regional Growth Fund.

Mark Prisk: The deadline for round one Regional Growth Fund application closed on 21 January. More than 450 applications have been received and are now being assessed by the Independent Advisory Panel chaired by my noble Friend Lord Heseltine.
	We do not have the information on the numbers of pooled bids at the moment as the large volume of bids are being appraised. We are aiming to publish the breakdown of bids shortly and details will be available on the BIS website at:
	www.bis.gov.uk/RGF

Students

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills how many student places his Department funded in 2009-10; how much such places it plans to fund in each of the next four years; and if he will make a statement.

David Willetts: We made available an additional 10,000 places in 2010/11. The grant letter to the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) issued on 20 December 2010 explained that the number of entrants to higher education in 2011/12 should be maintained at the levels in the previous year. Despite the overriding need to address the deficit we expect the number of places to be broadly maintained at those levels for the duration of the spending review period.

Students: Scotland

Ann McKechin: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 10 January 2011,  Official Report, column 155W, on students: finance, what the outcome was on his recent discussions with the Scottish Government on its ability to set its own threshold for Scottish students borrowing with the Student Loans Company.

David Willetts: I met with members of the Scottish Government on 10 February 2010. We discussed a range of issues relating to student finance.
	The Scottish Government are aware that Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is currently able to operate only one threshold across the United Kingdom. We have, however, recently reached agreement with HMRC that they will operate two thresholds from 6 April 2016-the existing £15,000 threshold and a new threshold of £21,000.

Trade Promotion

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills which countries his Department has identified as potential high growth markets for UK businesses; and what steps he is taking to promote the interests of UK business in these countries.

Mark Prisk: UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) has identified and is targeting 17 key high growth markets, based on their potential for growth and other criteria such as their market match and scope for UKTI help.
	The 17 UKTI high growth markets are: Brazil, China (including Hong Kong), India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Mexico, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, UAE and Vietnam.
	Of the 23,600 UK businesses that UKTI helped in 2009/10, nearly 40% were seeking help in regards to these high growth markets.
	UKTI is already responding to this demand for help by: ensuring there are targeted services and advice available for businesses considering these markets; raising greater awareness amongst UK business of these markets drawing on our expertise here and in our overseas network; communicating to businesses the specific opportunities in them; and campaigning for better access in these countries for UK companies.
	In addition to this, senior Ministers are actively engaging with overseas Governments in these markets. For instance, the Prime Minister has already visited India and China and the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, the right hon. Member for Twickenham (Vince Cable), has visited Brazil, Russia, India and China.
	The Trade and Investment White Paper published on 9 February 2011, says that UKTI will increase this focus on high growth markets. The new UKTI strategy, due to be published later this year, will set out how we will enhance our focus on these markets while maintaining strong support in developed markets, whose opportunities for UK business should not be overlooked.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Afghanistan: Females

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Glasgow Central (Anas Sarwar) of 2 February 2011,  Official Report, column 816W, on Afghanistan: females, what projects his Department is funding in Afghanistan with the aim of increasing women's empowerment; what the names are of such projects; when each began; and how much each has received from his Department in the latest period for which figures are available.

Alistair Burt: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has worked with other Departments within the Government to support various projects in Afghanistan with the aim of increasing women's empowerment.
	The FCO has provided funding of £200,000 from the Conflict Prevention Pool for a "Gender and Political Empowerment" project to support female Afghan parliamentary candidates and MPs during 2010-11.
	Since February 2008, the Government have provided a monthly grant of $4,660 to the Independent Commission of Women's and Children's Rights, which works to further the rights of women and children in Helmand. Over 2010 and 2011, the UK Government have provided £5,000 to help develop womens' networks across Afghanistan.
	Between 2009 and 2011, the Government provided $28.5 million to the United Nation's Development Programme's "Enhancing Legal and Electoral Capacity for Tomorrow" project, which has helped provide technical support for Afghan electoral institutions, including the Afghan Independent Election Commission's (IEC) gender unit.
	UK police officers are providing training to 16 female Afghan police officers in Helmand Province at their own training facility at the Provincial headquarters.

Afghanistan: Overseas Aid

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of his Department's expenditure in real terms on  (a) counter-narcotics and  (b) rule of law programmes in Afghanistan in each year from 2000-01 to 2011-12.

William Hague: Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) funding for counter-narcotics and rule of law work in Afghanistan currently comes from two sources: Conflict Pool (funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Department for International Development and the Ministry of Defence); and the Strategic Programme Fund.
	Spend from both these sources was:
	
		
			  Counter narcotics 
			   £ million 
			 2010-11 25.6 
			 2009-10 24.5 
			 2008-09 49.1 
		
	
	
		
			  Rule of Law 
			   £ million 
			 2010-11 19.2 
			 2009-10 28.l 
			 2008-09 18.8 
		
	
	Spending on counter narcotics and rule of law programmes in Afghanistan has fluctuated as projects have evolved. The UK will continue to provide support to both counter narcotics and wider rule of law activity in Afghanistan.
	Expenditure for 2004 to 2008 was part of counter terrorism and migration funding. Expenditure prior to 2004 was a part of the Drugs and Crime Fund. We are unable to disaggregate or make comparisons without incurring disproportionate cost.

Afghanistan: Overseas Aid

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of his Department's expenditure on human rights and democracy programmes in Afghanistan in real terms in each year from 2005-06 to 2011-12.

William Hague: Funding for human rights and democracy work in Afghanistan is currently from two sources: Conflict Pool (funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), the Department for International Development and the Ministry of Defence); and the Strategic Programme Fund. This expenditure was as follows:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2010-11 5.5 million 
			 2009-10 5.5 million 
			 2008-09 328,000 
		
	
	The increase in expenditure in 2009-10 reflects a re-prioritisation of projects and the increase of provisional governance programmes in Helmand Province. Expenditure has included support to Afghan human rights organisations and democracy programmes at national and sub-national level, including in relation to elections. Funding plans for 2011-12 are not yet final. The FCO will continue to provide support for human rights and democracy in Afghanistan as a key part of the Government's work to support and improve governance in Afghanistan. Expenditure for the period 2005 to 2008 was included in Global Conflict Prevention Pool funding and we are unable to disaggregate these figures or make comparisons without incurring disproportionate cost.

BBC External Services: Finance

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will place in the Library a copy of each item of correspondence between his Department and the  (a) BBC World Service Trust and  (b) Director-General of the BBC relating to recent decisions on funding for the BBC World Service.

William Hague: I placed copies of my correspondence with Sir Michael Lyons, chair of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Trust, in the Library of the House on 26 January 2011 as attachments to my written ministerial statement of the same date.
	I have had no correspondence with the director-general of the BBC on this topic, although we have discussed the subject.
	I am also placing in the House a copy of the letter of 20 October 2010 from the Permanent Under-Secretary of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to Peter Horrocks, the director of the BBC World Service, which sets out the settlement for the BBC World Service's funding until it transfers to the licence fee in 2014-15.

Colombia: Human Rights

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will raise with his Colombian counterpart the issue of the safety of  (a) human rights activists and  (b) trade unionists during his visit to Colombia.

Jeremy Browne: I regret that my visit to Colombia has been postponed due to parliamentary business. I hope to reschedule it for later this year.
	We welcome President Santos' commitment to tackle human rights issues and the Colombian Government's public recognition that civil society, and specifically human rights defenders-including trades unionists-have a vital role to play in overcoming the challenges that exist. The safety of these groups remains of great concern. We regularly raise this issue with the Colombian Government and shall continue to do so, including when I am next in Colombia.

Colombia: Human Rights

Tony Lloyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will raise with his Colombian counterpart the cases of David Ravelo Crespo and Carolina Rubio during his visit to Colombia.

Jeremy Browne: I regret that my visit to Colombia has been postponed due to parliamentary business. I hope to reschedule it for later this year. When I return to Colombia I shall take the opportunity to raise our concerns about the situation of human rights defenders there.
	Officials at our embassy in Bogotá continue to visit some individuals who are under threat, and make representations to the Colombian authorities in cases of violence or intimidation against members of Colombian civil society.
	On 28 September officials from our embassy together with representatives from the French, Dutch, Swedish and German embassies, visited the offices of the Corporación Regional para la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos (CREDHOS), the Barrancabermeja-based human rights organisation of which Mr Ravelo is Secretary General. They used the visit to discuss security issues and Mr Ravelo's situation. Our ambassador in Bogota met the Head of the Vice President's Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law Unit on 18 November where he again raised the case.
	At this meeting on 18 November our ambassador also raised the case of Carolina Rubio. On the same day our embassy wrote to the Attorney General's Office about her case. Ms Rubio was released from prison on 19 November, apparently on medical grounds.

Departmental Manpower

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate he has made of his Department's full-time equivalent headcount in each country in  (a) 2009-10,  (b) 2010-11 and  (c) 2011-12.

William Hague: The following table gives the approximate number of Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) employees at each overseas post/office for the fourth quarter of financial year 2010-11. These figures include UK-based civil servants and staff employed locally. For operational and security reasons, we cannot provide a more detailed breakdown.
	
		
			Number 
			 Afghanistan Kabul 180 
			 Afghanistan Lashkar Gah 35 
			 Albania Tirana 30 
			 Algeria Algiers 50 
			 Angola Luanda 25 
			 Anguilla Anguilla (1)- 
			 Argentina Buenos Aires 65 
			 Armenia Yerevan 20 
			 Ascension Islands Ascension (1)- 
			 Australia Brisbane 10 
			 Australia Canberra 55 
			 Australia Melbourne 15 
			 Australia Perth 10 
			 Australia Sydney 30 
			 Austria Vienna (embassy) 55 
			 Austria Vienna (OSCE) 15 
			 Austria Vienna (UN) 10 
			 Azerbaijan Baku 45 
			 Bahrain Bahrain 45 
			 Bangladesh Dhaka 230 
			 Bangladesh Sylhet (1)- 
			 Barbados Bridgetown 40 
			 Belarus Minsk 20 
			 Belgium Brussels (embassy) 65 
			 Belgium Brussels (NATO) 35 
			 Belgium Brussels (EU) 130 
			 Belize Belmopan 30 
			 Bermuda Hamilton (1)- 
			 Bolivia La Paz 25 
			 Bosnia and Herzegovina Sarajevo 35 
			 Bosnia and Herzegovina Banja Luka (1)- 
			 Botswana Gaborone 15 
			 Brazil Brasilia 150 
			 Brazil Rio de Janeiro 35 
			 Brazil Sao Paulo 80 
			 British Virgin Islands Tortola 10 
			 Brunei Bandar Seri Begawan 25 
			 Bulgaria Sofia 45 
			 Burma Rangoon 85 
			 Cambodia Phnom Penh 25 
			 Cameroon Yaounde 45 
			 Canada Montreal 10 
			 Canada Ottawa 55 
			 Canada Toronto 25 
			 Canada Vancouver 20 
			 Canada Calgary (1)- 
			 Cayman Islands Grand Cayman (1)- 
			 Chile Santiago 55 
			 China Beijing 190 
			 China Chongqing 35 
			 China Guangzhou 60 
			 China Shanghai 60 
			 Colombia Bogota 80 
			 Costa Rica San Jose 20 
			 Croatia Zagreb 30 
			 Cuba Havana 50 
			 Cyprus Nicosia 65 
			 Czech Republic Prague 55 
			 D R Congo Kinshasa 80 
			 Denmark Copenhagen 45 
			 Dominica Santo Domingo 20 
			 Ecuador Quito 20 
			 Egypt Alexandria 20 
			 Egypt Cairo 120 
			 Eritrea Asmara 15 
			 Estonia Tallinn 30 
			 Ethiopia Addis Ababa 150 
			 Falkland Islands Stanley (1)- 
			 Fiji Suva 20 
			 Finland Helsinki 45 
			 France Bordeaux 10 
			 France Lille 15 
			 France Lyon 15 
			 France Paris (embassy) 180 
			 France Paris (OECD) 15 
			 France Strasbourg (CoE) 10 
			 France Marseille (1)- 
			 Gambia Banjul 65 
			 Georgia Tbilisi 45 
			 Germany Berlin 110 
			 Germany Dusseldorf 60 
			 Germany Munich 25 
			 Ghana Accra 280 
			 Gibraltar Gibraltar 20 
			 Greece Athens 75 
			 Greece Corfu (1)- 
			 Greece Heraklion (1)- 
			 Greece Rhodes (1)- 
			 Greece Zakynthos (1)- 
			 Guatemala Guatemala City 25 
			 Guinea Conakry 10 
			 Guyana Georgetown 15 
			 Hong Kong SAR Hong Kong 100 
			 Hungary Budapest 55 
			 Iceland Reykjavik 15 
			 India Bangalore 20 
			 India Chennai 55 
			 India Kolkata 35 
			 India Mumbai 130 
			 India New Delhi 380 
			 India Hyderabad (1)- 
			 Indonesia Jakarta 90 
			 Iran Tehran 120 
			 Iraq Baghdad 65 
			 Iraq Erbil 10 
			 Iraq Basra (1)- 
			 Ireland Dublin 45 
			 Israel Jerusalem 55 
			 Israel Tel Aviv 65 
			 Italy Florence 10 
			 Italy Milan 35 
			 Italy Naples 10 
			 Italy Rome 110 
			 Italy Venice (1)- 
			 Ivory Coast Abidjan (1)- 
			 Jamaica Kingston 60 
			 Japan Osaka 25 
			 Japan Tokyo 140 
			 Jordan Amman 100 
			 Kasakhstan Almaty 10 
			 Kasakhstan Astana 30 
			 Kenya Nairobi 150 
			 Kosova Pristina 40 
			 Kuwait Kuwait 70 
			 Latvia Riga 30 
			 Lebanon Beirut 75 
			 Liberia Monrovia (1)- 
			 Libya Tripoli 80 
			 Lithuania Vilnius 35 
			 Luxembourg Luxembourg 10 
			 Macedonia Skopje 30 
			 Madagascar Antananarivo (1)- 
			 Malawi Lilongwe 35 
			 Malaysia Kuala Lumpur 95 
			 Malta Valletta 25 
			 Mauritius Port Louis 20 
			 Mexico Mexico City 110 
			 Mexico Guadalajara (1)- 
			 Mexico Monterrey (1)- 
			 Moldova Chisinau 30 
			 Mongolia Ulaanbaatar 15 
			 Montenegro Podgorica 10 
			 Morocco Casablanca 20 
			 Morocco Rabat 80 
			 Morocco Tangier (1)- 
			 Mozambique Maputo 30 
			 Namibia Windhoek 25 
			 Nepal Kathmandu 110 
			 Netherlands Amsterdam 10 
			 Netherlands The Hague 60 
			 New Zealand Auckland 10 
			 New Zealand Wellington 60 
			 Nigeria Abuja 220 
			 Nigeria Lagos 250 
			 North Korea Pyongyang 10 
			 Norway Oslo 40 
			 Oman Muscat 60 
			 Pakistan Islamabad 310 
			 Pakistan Karachi 80 
			 Panama Panama City 20 
			 Papua New Guinea Port Moresby 20 
			 Peru Lima 45 
			 Phillipines Manila 60 
			 Pitcairn Islands Pitcairn (1)- 
			 Poland Warsaw 75 
			 Portugal Lisbon 50 
			 Portugal Portimao (1)- 
			 Qatar Doha 30 
			 Romania Bucharest 55 
			 Russia Moscow 170 
			 Russia St Petersburg 25 
			 Russia Yekaterinburg 15 
			 Rwanda Kigali 30 
			 Saudi Arabia Al Khobar 15 
			 Saudi Arabia Jedda 30 
			 Saudi Arabia Riyadh 110 
			 Senegal Dakar 40 
			 Serbia Belgrade 70 
			 Seychelles Victoria 15 
			 Sierra Leone Freetown 200 
			 Singapore Singapore 90 
			 Slovakia Bratislava 25 
			 Slovenia Ljubljana 20 
			 Solomon Islands Honiara 15 
			 South Africa Cape Town 40 
			 South Africa Johannesburg 20 
			 South Africa Pretoria 160 
			 South Korea Seoul 80 
			 Spain Alicante 10 
			 Spain Barcelona 20 
			 Spain Madrid 110 
			 Spain Malaga 15 
			 Spain Bilbao (1)- 
			 Spain Ibiza (1)- 
			 Spain Las Palmas (1)- 
			 Spain Palma (1)- 
			 Sri Lanka Colombo 80 
			 St Helena Jamestown (1)- 
			 St Helena Tristan da Cunha (1)- 
			 St Lucia Castries (1)- 
			 Sudan Khartoum 250 
			 Sudan Juba (1)- 
			 Sweden Stockholm 50 
			 Switzerland Berne 35 
			 Switzerland Geneva (consulate general) 10 
			 Switzerland Geneva (UN) 45 
			 Syria Damascus 35 
			 Taiwan Taipei 50 
			 Tajikistan Dushanbe 40 
			 Tanzania Dares Salaam 40 
			 Thailand Bangkok 130 
			 Trinidad and Tobago Port of Spain 30 
			 Tunisia Tunis 55 
			 Turkey Ankara 120 
			 Turkey Istanbul 90 
			 Turkmenistan Ashgabat 10 
			 Turks and Caicos Islands Grand Turk 10 
			 Uganda Kampala 60 
			 Ukraine Kiev 50 
			 United Arab Emirates Abu Dhabi 80 
			 United Arab Emirates Dubai 110 
			 Uruguay Montevideo 20 
			 USA Atlanta 10 
			 USA Boston 25 
			 USA Chicago 30 
			 USA Houston 25 
			 USA Los Angeles 35 
			 USA Miami 15 
			 USA New York (consulate general) 55 
			 USA New York (UN) 90 
			 USA San Francisco 35 
			 USA Washington 250 
			 USA Denver (1)- 
			 USA Orlando (1)- 
			 USA Plymouth (1)- 
			 Uzbekistan Tashkent 30 
			 Vatican Holy See 10 
			 Venezuela Caracas 45 
			 Vietnam Hanoi 40 
			 Vietnam Ho Chi Minh 25 
			 Yemen Sana'a 140 
			 Zambia Lusaka 30 
			 Zimbabwe Harare 70 
			 (1) 5 or fewer.   Note:  Posts with fewer than 100 staff are rounded up to the nearest 5 and those with 100 or more are rounded up to the nearest 10. 
		
	
	We do not hold a comparable list for financial year 2009-10. Staffing at posts is kept under constant review so it is not possible to give numbers for future years.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent progress has been made on establishing a new foreign currency mechanism.

William Hague: The key principles for operation of the foreign currency mechanism and transitional measures have been established with the Treasury. Internal work to integrate the mechanism with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's internal financial processes continues.

Egypt: Politics and Government

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps he is taking to assist British citizens without access to finance to return to the UK from Egypt.

William Hague: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office organised two government-funded charter flights for British nationals on 3 and 5 February 2011. Passengers signed an undertaking to repay the cost of their seat on the flight and were not required to pay in advance. Commercial money transfer services in Egypt have resumed normal operations. Consular staff in Egypt and London can advise British nationals still in Egypt about how to transfer money through commercial means.

Egypt: Politics and Government

Douglas Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when he first received reports of unrest in Egypt.

William Hague: Our embassy in Cairo submitted a report on the possible impact on Egypt of events in Tunisia on 16 January 2010. A further report was made on 18 January which highlighted small demonstrations outside the Tunisian embassy as well as a number of self-immolations. A report of mass demonstrations on 25 January was submitted on 26 January.
	In addition to these three reports, I received regular up-dates on the political, economic and social conditions in Egypt in the months before the unrest began. Our ambassador also wrote a number of more formal reports over that period. My officials have exchanged information throughout, and continue to do so.

Gaza: Imports

David Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the change in the volume of goods entering the Gaza Strip from Israel since June 2010.

Alistair Burt: As we have said previously, we welcomed Israel's move last July from a restricted list of around 120 items permitted to enter Gaza to a far more permissive list of only prohibited and dual use items. Since then the volume and variety of goods entering Gaza has increased significantly. We believe on average that around 250 truck loads of goods enter Gaza through Kerem Shalom on a daily basis.
	However, as we continue to stress to the Israeli Government, including when the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Minister for the Middle East, Alastair Burt, visited the region on 16-19 January, more needs to be done to effect real changes on the ground. For ordinary Gazans, who cannot afford to buy many of the goods now entering Gaza, that means a revival of the economy and opportunities for employment. It also means getting the basics right in terms of reconstruction of Gaza's housing and infrastructure.
	We want to see the approvals process for dual use items for reconstruction projects accelerated and for the extension of the process to include raw materials for manufacturing. While we are encouraged by Israel's December announcement on exports, we need to see this translated into reality. Manufacturing exports destined for Gaza's traditional markets of Israel and the West Bank is the key to reviving the economy, countering radicalisation and bolstering Gaza's pragmatic business fraternity.

Gaza: Manpower

David Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the number of international staff of non-governmental organisations entering and leaving the Gaza Strip.

Alistair Burt: We have made no recent assessment of the number of non-governmental organisation (NGO) staff entering and leaving Gaza. However, we and the Department for International Development have a regular dialogue with the NGO community and we are well appraised of the difficulties they continue to face. We have lobbied the Israeli Government on the issue of access permits and residency visas for international NGO staff. More recently we have been aware of difficulties for some international staff members leaving Gaza through the Rafah crossing. We see little prospects for change in access through Rafah in the short term. British nationals intending to visit Gaza should be aware that we continue to advise against all travel to Gaza.

Iran: Human Rights

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent steps he has taken to support human rights groups in Iran.

Alistair Burt: The Iranian authorities ban activity by human rights groups in Iran as a means to prevent the regular and abhorrent abuses by the state coming to light. We have called on the Iranian authorities to respect their international obligations including the right to freedom of association. We regularly raise concern over the human rights situation in Iran including individual cases, and hope that our doing so will encourage the Iranian authorities to show restraint towards those in Iran who seek to defend and promote human rights.

Israel: Passports

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assurances he has received from the government of Israel since 15 June 2010 on its policy on the misuse of British passports.

Alistair Burt: We have not yet received any formal assurances from the Israeli Government on this issue. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), raised it with the Israeli ambassador to the UK in October 2010. He also raised it during his visit to Israel in November 2010 with Foreign Minister Lieberman. On both occasions he stressed that the misuse of British passports was unacceptable and should not happen again. Our ambassador in Tel Aviv also made this clear to the Israeli Government in November 2010.

Israel: Passports

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs 
	(1)  what discussions he has had since 10 June 2010 with the Government of Israel on its policy on the misuse of British passports; what the outcome was; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what recent representations he has made to the Government of Israel on the misuse of British passports.

Alistair Burt: We have not yet received any formal assurances from the Israeli Government on this issue. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right hon. Friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague), raised it with the Israeli ambassador to the UK in October 2010. He also raised it during his visit to Israel in November 2010 with Foreign Minister Lieberman. On both occasions he stressed that the misuse of British passports was unacceptable and should not happen again. Our ambassador in Tel Aviv also made this clear to the Israeli Government in November 2010.
	I have no plans to make any further statements to Parliament following the oral statement made by the previous Foreign Secretary on 23 March 2010,  Official Report, columns 133-34.

Middle East: International Assistance

David Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much funding his Department provided to aid and promote joint business initiatives between Israelis and Palestinians in 2010; and what proportion of UK aid to Israel and the Palestinian territories in that year this represented.

Alistair Burt: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has funded a £318,000 project through its Conflict programme: "investing in Peace through information and communications technology (ICT) business Co-operation and Capacity Building". This project has led to new business partnerships between Israeli and Palestinian companies. Four business partnerships valued at an estimated $2 million have already been established and others are in the making. The project has received international praise, winning a nomination for a Global ICT Excellence Award and most recently receiving the Digital Opportunity Award.
	UK Trade and Investment have also implemented a programme which supports both the Palestine-Britain Business Council and UK Israel Business.
	We are not able to say what percentage of United Kingdom aid to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories this represents.

Middle East: International Assistance

David Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with  (a) the Palestinian Authority,  (b) his Israeli counterpart and  (c) his US counterpart on efforts to strengthen the West Bank economy.

Alistair Burt: We have a detailed and ongoing dialogue with the Palestinian Authority about a number of issues related to the Gazan and West Bank economies. We also raise with the Israeli Government our concerns regarding, in particular, the stagnation of the economy in Gaza.
	We have made clear, most recently when the Minister for the Middle East, my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Alistair Burt) visited Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories in January 2011, that, while we welcomed Israel's move from a list of permitted goods to a list of banned goods and its December 2010 announcement that it would allow some exports, more needs to be done to bring real changes on the ground. This includes reaching pre-2007 levels of exports by the middle of this year, allowing the import of dual-use raw materials for manufacture, and ensuring Gaza has access to it's traditional markets of Israel and the West Bank. Reviving Gaza's economy is in Israel's interests; it will create jobs, counter radicalisation, provide an alternative to the Hamas-controlled tunnel smuggling economy and bolster Gaza's pragmatic business community.

Middle East: International Assistance

David Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with  (a) his US counterpart,  (b) the Palestinian Authority and  (c) his Israeli counterpart on US steps to strengthen the Palestinian Authority security forces.

Alistair Burt: My officials have regular discussions with the US and the Palestinian Authority on Palestinian security sector development. It is important that we do so given our substantial political and financial commitment to developing the Palestinian Authority (PA) security forces. We do so in close co-ordination with the US through the UK's British support team, which provides training for the security sector, for example, in developing leaderships skills and standards of professionalism.
	Building the capacity of the PA security forces is vital in helping lay the ground work for a future Palestinian state and a lasting solution to the conflict in the region. It is specifically laid out as a Roadmap obligation and our work is in line with this.
	It is on this latter point in particular that we engage the Israeli Government. We are alive to Israel's security concerns and believe that the Palestinian Authority has taken considerable steps to address its Roadmap obligations on security and developing the institutions of state. It is important that Israel now reciprocates, in particular by halting all settlement construction so that negotiations on a two state agreement can resume.

Palestinians: Security Forces

David Cairns: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much funding his Department provided to assist the US Security Coordinator for Israel and the Palestinian territories in the training of Palestinian security forces in  (a) 2008,  (b) 2009 and  (c) 2010.

Alistair Burt: The Tri-Departmental (the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Ministry of Defence and the Department for International Development) Middle East and North Africa Conflict Pool (MENA CP) funds the deployment of the British Support Team in Ramallah, to assist the US Security Co-ordinator in providing technical support and advice on governance, leadership and human rights issues to the Palestinian Security Sector, including the Civil Police, Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Justice. Management of the British Support Team is led by the UK Ministry of Defence.
	MENA CP funding per financial year is as follows:
	
		
			   £ 
			 2007-08 347,474 
			 2008-09 1,925,610 
			 2009-10 2,690,823 
			 2010-11 2,450,000 
		
	
	Final funding for 2010-11 is not confirmed and is based on the provisional allocation. Funding for the 2011-12 financial year has yet to be confirmed, however financial support through the MENA CP will continue for the deployment of the British Support Team.

Thailand: Cambodia

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on recent events on the Cambodia-Thai border; and if he will make a statement.

Jeremy Browne: I have been concerned by the outbreak of fighting on the Cambodia-Thai border and deeply regret the loss of life on both sides. The UK has urged both Governments to exercise restraint and to resolve the dispute through peaceful means.
	Following a private session on 14 February 2011, the UN Security Council made a press statement expressing its concern. It called on both sides to exercise restraint, to establish a permanent ceasefire and to resolve the situation through effective dialogue. The members of the Security Council expressed support for the active efforts of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and encouraged the parties to continue to co-operate with ASEAN in this regard.

Turkey: EU Enlargement

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent estimate he has made of the likely timetable for the accession of Turkey as a full member of the EU; and if he will make a statement.

David Lidington: EU accession is a condition-based not time-based process. Turkey's accession is a key goal for the Government, subject to the rigorous application of the accession criteria. We believe that Turkish accession would benefit both the UK and EU, contributing to our security and prosperity. The accession process is challenging and Turkey must meet the criteria and requirements of the EU acquis before it can join the Union.

Western Sahara: Politics and Government

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the recent incident at el-Aauin/Gdeim Izak and its effect on the 1991 ceasefire agreement in Western Sahara.

Alistair Burt: The Moroccan Parliament conducted and published its own investigation into the events in Laayoune and the Gdeim Izik camp.
	Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch also visited the territory and issued independent reports.
	An official from our embassy in Rabat visited Western Sahara in December 2010 and met with a range of Moroccan officials, international bodies, UN agencies and local non-governmental organisations.
	We understand that the UN Department for Peacekeeping Operations will send a mission to Western Sahara in February 2011 to assess the activities of UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara.